FarscapeBatman: Dark Knight, Rising Son
by Christopher Nihil
Summary: In the near future, Earth is enslaved by the Peacekeepers. A legend from the past and a series of events propels scientist John Crichton from the streets of Gotham City to the surface of Mars to battle for Earth's freedom.
1. Default Chapter

Farscape/Batman: Dark Knight, Rising Son, Pt. 1  
  
By: Spacelord  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Adult situations, profanity and violence).  
  
Summary: In a dark and distant future where humanity is enslaved by the Peacekeepers, a series of events propels a young scientist to discover the secrets of Bruce Wayne and the ultimate weapon to win Earth's freedom.  
  
Spoilers: None. This is AU. The Farscape characters are placed in the Batman universe.  
  
Disclaimers: Farscape is the property of Henson Company, Hallmark Entertainment and the Sci-Fi Channel. Batman is the property of DC Comics. Dr. Kanor and story concept are property of Christopher L. Stine. All characters used here are for entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement is intended and no monetary compensation has been received.  
  
Category: Crossover, Farscape/Batman.  
  
Archiving: Certainly. Please let me know when you do it.  
  
Note: Talk about a red herring! I have extensively re-written this story. This epic took a long time to create and it demanded revision. I hope I succeeded. Thanks to Mreen for her beta work and infinitely helpful advice. Dedicated to Bob Kane. Please send feedback to clstine@paonline.com. Enjoy.  
  
Prologue: A Dark Night Descends  
  
October 3, 2007  
  
Jack Crichton laughed. "I'm serious. The view is literally out of this world."  
  
"That joke is older than you are."  
  
He was serious, too. There was little cloud cover over the Earth, providing a spectacular view of Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. It was what made the observation port the most popular spot on the International Space Station. The seven-member crew awoke every morning to beautiful panoramas as they floated overhead, their station on-line and operational for almost a full year.  
  
He floated in front of the communications console, holding a white-knuckle grip on the control panel to better appreciate the image of the attractive female on the video monitor. After a week of horticulture experiments, a full day of repair work on the solar panels and four hours of non-stop video conferencing with the suits at the International Aeronautics Space Administration, all he wanted now was face-to-face time with his wife.  
  
"Are they trying to work you till you collapse?"  
  
She was teasing him again, but it never failed to brighten his day. "I'm fine, Leslie. We're breaking for dinner in a bit and calling it a day. I wish you and little John could be here. You both would love it."  
  
"Doubtful," she laughed, thinking about how a five-year-old would respond to zero gravity. "I've enough work to do just keeping an eye on him. Oh, by the way, his teacher says he's reading at a second grade level already."  
  
"That's my boy. He'll be following in his old man's footsteps."  
  
"HA! Not if I have something to say about it."  
  
Leslie always did. She was as willful as the little boy they were raising. Not that he would have wanted her any other way. She was the only one he ever knew who did not take any guff from him. What a woman, he thought.  
  
"I really have to go now. We can talk again tomorrow. Kiss John goodnight for me, will you?"  
  
"I will." Her voice trailed off a bit. She was becoming sad; he could always tell.  
  
"I love you."  
  
"Love you too. Bye."  
  
Her image faded from the screen. He missed her- as much as he missed little John. Assignments on the ISS were for six full months, and he had only been on board for three weeks. Video calls were random at best, but necessary for his sanity since the IASA bigwigs did not schedule flights in between projects for astronauts to visit their families.  
  
Work now, three months annual leave later, he told himself. After all, John will only be young once.  
  
The second shift crewmembers were already gathered in the dining compartment, dining on bags labeled minestrone, barbeque chicken patties and orange juice. How they could tell the difference was beyond him. Except for color, they all looked alike once they were in the bags. They were nutritious, perhaps, but he preferred fried chicken and ribs with a side of grits any day to them. But he was hungry, so he grabbed a packet of dark red and a tube of yellow anyway.  
  
"Hello, Sergei."  
  
Sergei Rubavitch looked up from his meal, and shifted to accommodate his shipmate. "Evening, Colonel. Did you hear the message IASA sent us?"  
  
Jack bit into his chicken patty. "Which one is that? I got several from them today."  
  
'This is the one that says Hubble telescope caught some images of an object heading this way. They want us to keep an eye on it."  
  
"What is it, a meteor?"  
  
Sergei shook his head. "Doubt it. Could be American paranoia, but I swear they're a little nervous about it."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"We were getting to that Colonel, but we didn't want to alarm you, especially while you were talking to your wife."  
  
Jack turned to see James Gordon, his second in command, floating into the dining area. He never had the look on his face that he did unless it was something that would be considerably less than pleasing.  
  
"Actually Colonel, you should finish that quick and come with me. There's something I want to show you."  
  
***  
  
They were gathered in the main command module when the message started up. All eyes fixed on the main video monitor. A series of images played in random order, transmitted from the Hubble telescope's database.  
  
It was not a meteor. Silhouetted against the planet Jupiter was the outline of a ship. It was a long cylindrical construction with a large ring interconnected to it. Jack looked on in childlike astonishment. It had to be enormous to be photographed at that distance.  
  
"Any idea what it is?" His gaze remained locked on the images.  
  
James shook his head. "It's nothing we made, that's for sure. IASA estimates it's almost a mile in length. We do know it's heading this way according to estimated trajectory, and they're slowing down. IASA wants us to broadcast a message, to try and make contact with them."  
  
"Sounds like a plan. Let's hope they come in peace."  
  
"And if they don't tovarisch?" Comrade Sergei never hid his pessimism. "What do they want us to keep them in line with, harsh language?"  
  
Jack said nothing. They were coming, whether they liked it or not. A friendly nod their way might help if it was to be first contact.  
  
Following IASA protocol, they broadcast several messages, each in different Earth languages. The ship was still moving fast and would be approaching shortly. There had been no response, so they resigned themselves to wait and see if it yielded any results.  
  
***  
  
Tomoko quietly watched the view screen in the command module, volunteering to keep watch. Several hours had passed since the greetings had been transmitted, with no reply heard. She was the only female member currently aboard, and said she needed what she called a "non-masculine diversion." Jack gave her the shift and remained close by making coffee while the others rested.  
  
A small object appeared on the screen.  
  
"Colonel?"  
  
It was approaching the station and slowing down.  
  
Tomoko hit the alarm. "There's a small ship approaching!"  
  
Most of the other crewmembers streamed into the command module while they looked out an observation portal at the unidentified craft. It was slightly larger than the Farscape evacuation module docked under the ISS. It was box shaped, with two pods extending out the sides towards the front of the craft. A pulsing light shot out of the top of the craft, streaming over the body of the ISS.  
  
"What are they doing?" Jack said.  
  
"Must be a scout ship. I'd reckon they're sizing us up, figuring out who we are," said James. "We should send another message."  
  
Jack floated over to the communications console and picked up the microphone. "Unidentified craft, this is Colonel Jack Crichton, commander of the International Space Station. Please identify yourself and state your intentions. We are a peaceful world, and we offer you our friendship."  
  
First there was silence, and then a high-pitched distortion came through the receiver that made everyone wince just before they received their reply.  
  
"Huk tiujj sweewon ellfattsu zwaon Zelbinion. Huk nelzzun toi ajun ka tarznikniyun!"  
  
James's jaw dropped. "What the hell was that? It sounded like backwards talking."  
  
Jack held up the microphone again. "Unidentified craft, we don't understand your language. Do you have any way to translate?"  
  
A tremendous explosion rocked the station and threw the ISS crewmembers against the stations bulkhead. The hissing sound of air escaping announced a hull breach in the station.  
  
"Was that their translation?" Sergei asked.  
  
My God, they're firing at us, Jack thought to himself, already knowing the answer.  
  
Through the portal, yellow bolts of light were coming out of the strange craft, striking the Japanese Experimental Module linked above them.  
  
"Seal the hatch!" Jack said. "We have to get to the escape ship now!"  
  
"Colonel, Arashi and Ito are still in the JEM above us!" Tomoko said, starting to panic. "We have to save them! We-"  
  
She never finished. An explosion cut her off. There was a loud burst following by a high-pitched shriek that sounded of oxygen escaping rapidly. Jack scanned the module quickly for the leak; there was none. The shriek had streamed out of Tomoko, now crying hysterically. A tattered body that floated out of view outside told them the end result. The JEM shattered under the craft's energy weapons. The second Japanese crewman must have disintegrated instantly. They were the first to die against the invaders.  
  
"Goddamn murderers." Jack cursed. The ISS had offered the hand of friendship, and got bit- hard. "We have to abandon ship now! Everybody, move it before they get us, too."  
  
Further explosions rocked the station. Sergei contacted the other Russian crewman at the far end of the station while Jack led the others down below the habitation module to where the Farscape evacuation vehicle was docked.  
  
Reaching the cockpit, they could see clearly what was happening up above. Fast moving ships that resembled fighter planes had joined the craft- Prowlers, as they would learn later. They passed in a strafing run, firing their weapons down upon the ISS. The truss assembly was already disintegrating, with remnants of solar panels and cables flying past the Farscape's windows. Several of the modules in the front of the ISS had already imploded. Jack could see bright flashes above the ship and felt the whole station shaking.  
  
He prepped the ship for immediate departure as the remaining crew entered in. Tomoko, James and Sergei nearly completed the head count. The other Russian member of the station still remained absent.  
  
"Sergei, where's Viktor?"  
  
The Russian pointed out to the front window. "Does that answer your question?"  
  
Directly in front of the Farscape, a Soyuz craft, the second evacuation vehicle was undocking, attempting to flee from the rapidly disintegrating station.  
  
Jack felt his heart skip. "Dammit, why didn't he come with us?"  
  
"There was no time," Sergei said. "All the modules have collapsed. He would be out there dead with Arashi and Ito now if he had."  
  
"I think you spoke too soon." Tomoko said quietly, her voice trembling.  
  
While the Farscape undocked, Jack and the others watched as the craft that had first approached them hover between them and the Soyuz module. It began to turn towards the Russian craft, powering up its weapons.  
  
"Bastards!" Jack hollered. "He doesn't have a chance! Isn't it enough they chased us off the station?"  
  
The craft's weapons flashed and the Soyuz module exploded. Earth was only spared for a moment the knowledge that the first humans had perished at the hands of aliens.  
  
The fire from the burning Russian ship quickly died out, and the craft turned its attention to the Farscape module. The survivors went silent as they watched its approach. Screaming in terror seemed like a moot point.  
  
"Now we die as well." James's voice echoed their thoughts. It was hard to see any other outcome.  
  
"Like hell. That's not going to happen," Jack said.  
  
Using the maneuvering jets on the Farscape, he quickly rotated the ship around with its back facing the alien craft. He waited for it to close the distance between them. Through the exterior cameras, he saw the glow where the craft powered up its weapons. As it came directly in range behind them, he pressed the ignition switch, igniting the Farscape's main rockets.  
  
The engines roared to life, shooting out a long white-hot tongue of flame that bathed the alien craft, burning through its hull. Farscape sped away rapidly, widening the distance between them and the station. Jack looked back and saw the ship explode, much to his satisfaction.  
  
It had been a Marauder, the eyes, ears and claws of the enemy. Its destruction earned them the only victory the humans would have in space against them.  
  
"That was for the others."  
  
"So now what?" Sergei asked.  
  
"Now, we get back in one piece," Jack said. "We have to let IASA and everyone else with an operating military know what just happened. There has to be some way to stop."  
  
He never finished the sentence. From a distance, Jack and the other ISS survivors saw the giant black ship as it came into view. It was the same one the Hubble had photographed earlier. Its size beggared description, even bigger than they had imagined.  
  
A set of three guns rotated into view on the giant ring that circled the Command Carrier. The frag cannons fired a massive burst of energy down upon the ISS. They watched in horror as the International Space Station, hundreds of billions of dollars in cost and six plus years of construction were destroyed in an instant.  
  
The Peacekeeper onslaught had begun. They most assuredly had not come in peace.  
  
***  
  
Part 1: A Slave to the Grind  
October 3, 2037 (Earth calendar), Gotham City  
He was dreaming- again.  
  
It was the same dream he re-lived for years. In dim shades of gray he saw the bad men surrounding the boy and his parents in a dark place- an alley or back street, taunting and prodding them. Fear seized hold of him. Tears ran down the cheeks of the young boy's eyes. His father, protective and defiant, cursed them soundly while holding his wife close to him.  
  
There was a flash, a burst of heat and then silence. He turned to see his father and mother falling over dead. The smoking wound left by a weapon was visible on their chests. He felt himself paralyzed, unable to cry or speak. All around him the bad men laughed mockingly. In his world he became totally and completely alone.  
  
A shadow appeared just then and covered everyone. Even the bad men looked up, startled at the apparition. The boy stared in terror at the dark mass. Was it a wraith? Maybe it was the angel of death itself. A pair of leathery wings stretched out to an impossible width. He could hear the fluttering of the wings just before waking to a loud buzzing that filled his ears.  
  
John Crichton opened his eyes. The alarm clock had been going off for a full minute. He covered his eyes with his hand, trying to adjust them to the light that shone through his bedroom window. Jackhammers raged on in his head, considering the hard throbbing. He drank too much last night, just like every other night. His foot contacted an empty whiskey bottle as he moved off his bed and nearly slipped. He moaned loudly, wishing it were not Monday, but it was. It was time to get up and go to work for his masters.  
  
After a quick shower and shave, he selected a pair of slate-gray pants and a pressed white shirt to go with his black shoes and tie. He disliked having to wear a white-collar outfit for them, but his Peacekeeper employers insisted on a dress code.  
  
It's not like there was much choice. He did what they told him. He already used up most of the sick time he was allotted for the year, and being late could bring penalties. Co-workers and friends droned over and over not to do anything rash to jeopardize what he had: a nice apartment in the best section of Gotham City, his own car and the benefits and privileges of having a high profile job, even if it was a master-slave relationship. The Peacekeepers were rarely so generous to the rest of the populace. Many humans struggled to get goods and services. He had it easy compared to most.  
  
Downing a glass of orange juice and a bagel, he took the elevator down to the garage and slid into his car. It was better to stay ahead of the morning traffic, to avoid showing up late. He made it a point to be punctual, but never early. Just like the way he used up his sick leave, he would not give the Peacekeepers any more of his time than he had to.  
  
Gotham's city streets remained wide, and he quickly turned the corners passing graffiti strewn walls and crumbling buildings. Many of the people standing on the corners and walking the sidewalks looked haggard, and not because they just woke up. A hard life under Peacekeeper occupation was an understatement. Peacekeepers considered Earth a fruit ripe for harvest, which is why they plundered its resources like there would be no tomorrow. The fact that there was also an oppressed but intelligent species living there that happened to look Sebacean was of little concern to them.  
  
They herded people into the city areas to better watch them, and maximized farming and mining operations in the rural and wilderness areas into strictly controlled collectives- just like elsewhere on Earth. Video cameras peered out from buildings, armored vehicles cruised around with mounted pulse guns and checkpoints patrols clad in black were seen all over the city. The Peacekeepers wanted complete control, and they had it.  
  
John slowed his car down. To his left on a wide space of wall that remained where an old store had once stood, someone had spray-painted a message on the wall in big letters.  
  
PREPARE FOR THE RETURN OF THE BATMAN  
  
Batman? He was supposed to be an old urban legend according to Peacekeeper propaganda. To Gotham's old timers before the invasion he was a real flesh and blood man. To everyone else, he was merely a pipe dream. John doubted the legend. He had never laid eyes on him, not even as a child or he would have remembered. Years of working for the Peacekeepers had given him first- hand experience at the strange and unusual, not to mention making him a bitter, jaded, remorseful...  
  
He stopped himself. He hated going to that place in his head. It was best not to think about it. Better to get back to the real world.  
  
His reality consisted of working for the Peacekeepers' science projects while they harvested billions of tons of ore, oil, uranium and other precious materials to ship back to their home systems. They needed plenty of fuel to further their other conquests.  
  
If only there was a Batman today to fight the Peacekeepers. Whoever wrote the message on the wall was lucky they were not shot dead. There was no such luck for the former. He shook his head and continued on, stomping down on the gas pedal.  
  
If only.  
  
Turning at the next red light, the tall silvery spire of the Peacekeeper Tower came into view. Twice the height of the next tallest building in Gotham, the residents referred to it as the stiletto that stabbed Earth in the back. He simply referred to it as his workplace.  
  
The Peacekeeper guard in the booth glanced indifferently at John's identification card and promptly sent him through. John stifled the urge to give the guard the finger as he saluted his car's entry into the building. The day had just started- no sense in making it worse. They were known to shoot at the human's for a lot less.  
  
"Good morning. You look like crap," said DK, John's lab partner and childhood friend as he walked into the office.  
  
"I feel like crap," John said. "Did you make coffee yet?"  
  
"Just made a fresh pot." DK watched him walk past without another word. "We have the results from the magnetic wave tests if you want to see them."  
  
"Great. Put them on my desk. I'll stare at them totally uninterested in a little while."  
  
DK looked at him, worried. "John, don't let them hear you say that. You don't want to-"  
  
"Blow what I have. yeah, yeah. I've heard the speech before. Jesus Christ, you practically wrote it."  
  
"Maybe. So, what's bothering you?"  
  
John poured himself a cup of coffee and took a deep drink before answering. "I had the dream again last night. In black and white and full Dolby stereo surround sound."  
  
"The dream?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Don't you think you should see a doctor about it? I mean it seems to be happening a lot. And your drinking might be helping to exasperate the problem."  
  
John stared at him hard, and then turned away. "That's great, DK. You think a doctor will help? Jack Crichton's boy is going nuts from a bad dream, and he's an alcoholic. The moment they see the doctor's report, our Peacekeeper Gestapo will send me to Arkham Asylum. Do you know what they actually do to people there?"  
  
"Dammit John, keep your voice down. They're always listening. Don't you remember what happened to Alex?" DK was a worrier, and he worried a hell of a lot these days. John was on his way to becoming a candidate for reprogramming, and that could include close associates. Peacekeeper techniques were painfully efficient, and DK was aware of them all. John never calmed his fears, not even a little.  
  
"I don't want to talk about it."  
  
"But-"  
  
"I said I don't want to talk about it."  
  
DK sighed. "All right, I'm sorry. Can we try and get on the right foot this morning?"  
  
John rubbed his head softly. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry, too. Where are those magnetic wave results again?"  
  
John and DK walked into the huge chamber where the human and Peacekeeper scientists performed various tests on the heavily guarded machines that were set up all over the building. Throughout the day, fluctuations in the electromagnetic spectrum were measured, energy particle accelerations were sampled and board meetings with the members of Peacekeeper High Command lasted for arns- hours. They were insistent on results from the work they had the humans assisting them with.  
  
John put on his best look of cooperation while desperately trying to kill his conscience. He told himself he was not betraying Earth, that he was merely a victim of circumstances. The excuse never worked.  
  
***  
  
"Good night, Dr. Crichton."  
  
John off-handedly waved to the Peacekeeper guard who opened the gate for him. He preferred to keep contact with them to a minimum. After all, irreversible contamination could work both ways, or so Dr. Kanor, the head Peacekeeper scientist, would joke to him. "You don't want to cause one of us to suffer irreversible contamination from contact with a foreign species, do you, Dr. Crichton? We may have to eliminate you as well, and who wants that to happen?"  
  
John would only smile politely at the pun while fighting the urge to punch out the obnoxious ass that he was.  
  
Stepping on the gas pedal, he sped off into Gotham's wet, neon-lit streets. It was early evening, when Gotham really came to life. It had long been considered a city of the night even before the coming of the Peacekeepers. He cranked up the heater on his dashboard; it was chilly for October. He needed a bite to eat, as well as another bottle of scotch- or maybe some merlot. But more importantly, he had to meet someone from the resistance.  
  
Turning onto a dimly lit street, his eyes focused on the cul-de-sac at the far end where a tall figure stood silently, awaiting his arrival. As he pulled up in front of a green trash bin streaked brown with rust, he could see a middle-aged woman under the lone streetlight.  
  
She was strikingly beautiful. Her long dark hair had a streak of silver running through it in the front. Her figure was quite solid beneath her tight clothes for a woman of her age. Of all the Earth resistance contacts he had met, she was not one of them. He would have definitely remembered her.  
  
"My face is up here, handsome."  
  
Minding his manners, John cleared his throat and straightened himself. "Are you Selina?"  
  
She held a long black cigarette up to her mouth. He watched the tip glow as smoke billowed out between a pair of bee-stung lips.  
  
"Who else would I be, Poison Ivy? No, she died pretty quick when the PKs hit this burg. Or so I was told."  
  
He tilted his head. "You know who I am?"  
  
"I've heard of you. You work for your Peacekeeper masters during the day, and help pass along Earth resistance info at night. Tell me, does it help you to sleep?" She threw the cigarette down and crushed it under her boot. "Or does all the booze help, too?" She walked up nose-to-nose with him to sniff at his breath. "I suppose not. Don't you ever get tired of licking Scorpius' boots?"  
  
"Back off lady, you know nothing about me."  
  
"More than you could imagine," she said smoothly, as she cocked her head. She reached down and picked up the package sitting on the ground beside her by the twine wrapped around it. "Here are the pamphlets. The virus chip is wrapped inside the top one. Use it cautiously when you upload it into their systems."  
  
John took the box from her, examining it briefly. "If only it were that simple. We have to bypass their safeguards."  
  
She chuckled slightly. "That's not my part to deal with, Johnny."  
  
He shook his head- no point in arguing with her. "It's too bad the Batman doesn't exist. We could use help from someone like him, nowadays."  
  
Selina's expression froze. "What do you know about the Batman?"  
  
"He's some urban legend. A crime fighter in dark tights, used to beat the bad guys up. He must've been their boogeyman. My parents told me about him when they were alive. Whatever he was, he must have been too good to be true. Why do you ask?"  
  
She threw back her head and laughed heartily. "How can you be so handsome, yet so clueless? Did the PKs tell you that? He WAS real, Johnny. Just like your alien masters are. When Batman was alive, this city had law and order. He kept the peace for everyone, even for a manipulative, thieving soul like me." She sighed, remembering the past. "God, do I miss that man."  
  
John frowned. "So, what happened to him?"  
  
She shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows? Maybe he just got tired. When the PKs came, I guess he thought he had met his match and left while he still could. Or maybe."  
  
"Maybe what?"  
  
"Maybe he's just been hibernating, waiting for a day when he would come back and take back what is rightfully ours from these goose stepping Huns." Selina cocked her head at John. "It's too bad you don't believe in our heroes. You and he have more in common than you can imagine."  
  
John looked at her, still confused. "Why do you say that?"  
  
"For example, before your father died, did he or did he not tell you that every man gets a chance to be his own kind of hero?"  
  
His jaw dropped. No one living could have known that. No one else was present when his father told him that just days before he died.  
  
She held up his watch that she expertly removed from his wrist while he had accepted the parcel from her. "Booze has killed your senses. Batman would never have fallen for a simple thieves' trick like this."  
  
He glanced down at his arm and saw a bare wrist. He never even felt the watch being removed. "Give it back," he said, becoming angry.  
  
"Meow! So, there is still some fire left inside of you. I guess the Peacekeepers didn't smite it all out," Selina said. "That's good; you may need it down the road." She threw his watch back to him. "It's time for me to go. I need my beauty sleep. Reflect on what I said, handsome."  
  
John turned to walk back to his car, but hesitated. "Hey Selina," he said as he turned around, "what did you mean by-"  
  
She was gone. There was no one in the cul-de-sac but him. She had disappeared without a sound. A lone black cat ran out from behind the trash bin and stared at John for a moment before disappearing into the shadows.  
  
***  
  
John sat in his apartment, looking over the pamphlets in the box he had received from the mysterious woman. He paused only to take a bite out of the hamburger he picked up driving home. Distributing Earth resistance information to the population was an easy task, but using a custom made computer virus was a first. The design of it intended it to cripple all the information systems at the Peacekeeper Tower. All weapons projects the Peacekeepers had been developing would hopefully be junk by tomorrow- if they were not killed first.  
  
He stood up to stretch. Selina's words had stung him. That there was some truth to it made it worse. Would he still have the desire to pass on resistance information a year from now? He might wash away his sorrows in a bottle for all he knew. The Peacekeepers had that effect on the majority of the populace.  
  
Even a drink would not settle his nerves. He walked into the kitchen and opened the cupboard to where he kept his liquor stash. An unopened bottle of Johnny Walker Red stared back at him. He stood there for a long time, and then finally closed the door. It must have been worse than he thought. His hand on the cupboard handle was shaking.  
  
John Crichton, Johnny Walker, Johnny Walker Crichton. Why not, they had worse nicknames for him.  
  
This was not the life he- or his father- had pictured for him. But he told himself his options were severely limited the day he and his mother were killed. Bend and obey or crawl through the mud, they told him in indoctrination school. Many complied, but he could never forget the image of his parents lying dead in that alley. It was the one thing that stopped him from being their puppet, and the one thing that had broken him.  
  
Every man gets a chance to be his own kind of hero, his father said to him once. He never felt like a hero. Heroes never drank themselves into a stupor, or used it as an excuse to numb the guilt of being alive. A drink did seem more reasonable now.  
  
There was a beeping noise in his ears. The soft glow of green letters appeared on the blank computer screen and began spelling out something. He had left his computer on to send some encrypted e-mails to other resistance members, but he had not expected receiving any tonight, and that made any incoming message suspect. As he approached the computer slowly, his nerves began to get the best of him- could the Peacekeepers have cracked the coding he was using?  
  
Sitting down at his desk, he read the message, source unknown:  
  
I HAVE WATCHED YOU FOR A LONG TIME.  
  
I KNOW YOUR PAIN. YOU SEEK ANSWERS. A SLAVE WILL NOT FIND THEM FROM HIS MASTER. YOU WILL NOT FIND THEM IN A BOTTLE. BREACH THE NORTHERN PERIMETER AND TRAVEL NORTH 40 KILOMETERS TO THE MANOR RUINS. YOU WILL FIND ME THERE.  
  
A DARK KNIGHT WILL RISE.  
  
Nothing else followed. Confused, he switched off the computer.  
  
***  
  
"Who do you think it was?" DK said, puzzled.  
  
"No idea. But I'm sure it wasn't the Peacekeepers. There was no door being blown off the hinges and taking me off somewhere into the night to be tortured." John sighed. "It had to be an unknown code signal to get through to my system."  
  
"Speaking of which, do you have the virus with you?"  
  
John tapped his coat pocket, indicating the chip was still there. It resembled the standard Peacekeeper data chip, with one important exception. "I got it right here- our little yellow pill. We upload this into the PK Network, and it's nuked. I just have to get into the central chamber."  
  
DK shook his head. "Not this time, buddy. I'm due up there for a systems check. Let me do it."  
  
They looked around the centrifuge chamber the two of them stood in. Peacekeeper guards stood at every door and cameras kept an eye on the mass of scientists, officers and other personnel that moved about. How much video equipment does one organization need to use? If they were discovered, they would be captured before they could blink. There was one chance to us the virus program. Any mistake meant being pulse-blasted to a crisp.  
  
"I know what you're thinking," DK said. "You're not a sellout, all right? You brought the chip this far. Most people wouldn't have the guts to do this. But now, it's my turn, ok?  
  
"Are you sure this is foolproof?" John said, reaching into his pocket for the chip.  
  
"Ah, Dr. Crichton, there you are."  
  
John's hand froze leaving it in his pocket. He turned to face a tall lean man who was balding on top. Dr. Kanor reminded him of a bad b-movie actor who always played Nazis or psychos. He escorted a bearded Peacekeeper officer that approached them both.  
  
"Dr. Crichton, DK, I would like you to meet Commissioner Bialar Crais. He was recently sent to take over the leadership for the Peacekeeper's Law Enforcement Liaison here in Gotham City." Kanor gestured towards the bearded man.  
  
His complexion was darker than the average Peacekeeper. He wore the long black tunic that designated a high-ranking official. A silver badge on his left chest with a chain connecting it to his left shoulder epaulet symbolized Peacekeeper Law Enforcement. His stone-faced expression alone identified him as a PK cop. He did not bother with formalities, as his hands remained clasped behind his back, offering no handshake.  
  
"Hello, Dr. Crichton," Crais said. "Although I cannot speak for Peacekeeper High Command, I can assure you we appreciate the work you do for us." He turned to DK. "I also pledge that the streets of Gotham City will be safe under my jurisdiction."  
  
John forced a smile, trying his best to fake sincerity. "That's good to hear. I gather the good Dr. Kanor is giving you a tour of our facilities?"  
  
"He is indeed. And I'm quite impressed with the progress here."  
  
"Our results should be coming to fruition quite soon commissioner," Kanor said. "I believe Scorpius will be quite pleased with our project."  
  
"Which would be.?" DK said, asking the question he and the others were not supposed to ask.  
  
Kanor did not correct him. Everyone's attention in the chamber was fixed towards the upper level that occupied the top half of the room. A dark figure was standing by the rails looking down at the vast centrifuge.  
  
They gazed up at a man dressed in black with a purple cloak wrapped around his shoulders. He was tall and thin, with sunken eyes and a pale complexion. Guards of the Peacekeeper's elite flanked him. John winced at the sight of him. It was rare that he ever showed his face, and judging by his appearance, it was for good reason- he literally looked like a walking corpse. It was Scorpius himself.  
  
He walked silently along the rail, examining the people on the lower levels below him. When his stare met Johns, their gaze locked for a moment. Scorpius' eyes looked completely human, but there was an abnormal coldness that penetrated right through him.  
  
John shuddered. He might as well have been looking at the devil. Most humans would say he was.  
  
At last, he turned and departed, with his heavily armed entourage following him. John and the others breathed in relief. They could have cut the tension in the air with a knife.  
  
"Don't get too many visits from him, do we?" DK said.  
  
"No," Kanor said. "He spends most of his time in the uppermost levels of this tower. No one at our level is privy to what he does."  
  
"And should not be," Crais added.  
  
"Yes, of course, Commissioner." Kanor led him over to the main exit. "Let us continue your tour, there is so much left for you to see. Thank you for your time, Dr. Crichton."  
  
"So long, ass-kisser," John said quietly through another forced smile.  
  
DK grunted. "Yeah, notice he doesn't say anything to me?" He reached into John's pocket and snatched the chip out quickly. "I'll see you later, buddy. Wish me luck."  
  
John watched him as he walked away, a slight bounce in his step. DK had a flair for diluting all things tense and frustrating. That ability was probably the main reason he was still sane. He always felt the need to be protective of John as if he were being reserved for some greater unannounced plan. What could be bigger than destroying the Peacekeeper computer network?  
  
The doors slid open and DK disappeared through them. Despite their planning, it was far too easy. Something was bound to go wrong. He felt that sensation in the pit of his stomach, and he was feeling it again.  
  
Swallowing the bile he felt accumulating in his throat, John walked back to the centrifuge.  
  
***  
  
The klaxons sounded just as John was picking up a computer printout. Looking up, flashing red lights pulsed over each door as they automatically sealed shut, preventing anyone from escaping. The speakers repeated the message over and over as guards and personnel scrambled about:  
  
Warning! Unauthorized infiltration by an unidentified viral cascade into systems network.  
  
Peacekeeper guards scrambled to round up him and the other civilians while his heart began fluctuating. The sound of pulse weapons firing through the doorways echoed in the distance. His mind began racing, imagining the worst possible scenario. DK was no soldier, so he would not stand a chance.  
  
"Kanor, what's going on?" John said. The Peacekeeper scientist shot out of the crowd just as they were ushered to one of the emergency exits.  
  
"Someone just tried to install a frelling virus into our systems network," Kanor vented angrily. "But before the guards could reach him, some of your brethren in the resistance movement attacked. They have already been dealt with, but we need to find out how they got in and who the saboteur was."  
  
"My brethren?"  
  
He said nothing further. Kanor's true colors always came out in moments like this. The spirit of cooperation he purported to preach to humans did not mean he still did not see them as lower life forms. He knew what DK's fate would be if he and any of his associates were caught.  
  
Who were the resistance fighters in the building? Were they part of the plan to destroy the computer network? He had never been informed by DK or anyone else. They may have been acting entirely on their own, and it was a mere coincidence that they appeared when DK was uploading the virus into the Peacekeeper's database.  
  
Not goddamned likely, John thought.  
  
Civilian personnel were sent immediately to the ground floor to wait outside while security dealt with the skirmishes raging on in the building above them. The streets were crawling with Peacekeeper police trying to keep back crowds of curious people gathering in the front of the entrance. John looked around in the crowd; DK was nowhere to be seen.  
  
"John!"  
  
Barbara Gordon, one of his assistants, ran up to him. Her long red hair, previously pinned up in a bun, was coming loose and falling down around her shoulders.  
  
"Barbara? Are you ok?"  
  
"I'm fine, but the guards said they saw DK trying to upload a virus into the main network's console."  
  
"Where is he?" He would not make it obvious he knew the circumstances.  
  
"One of the cameras caught him using an emergency escape chute in the back of the tower. By now, he's already down here in the streets somewhere."  
  
"That's right, but not to worry," Kanor said, walking up to them with a fake smile on his face. "Commissioner Crais has already dispatched a pair of hunters to apprehend him. He was one of your colleagues, Crichton. Did you not know he was planning on doing something like this?"  
  
John kept his face expressionless. If he said anything- one word or even something insignificant to imply he knew of a sabotage attempt, he would doom himself. Peacekeeper interrogations were brutal. He would lose everything, particularly his life.  
  
Don't do anything to blow what you have. DK's words echoed in his head.  
  
"I had no idea, Doctor. DK was a bit. radical." He could barely whisper it. The last part took a lot out of him to say.  
  
Barbara stared on in shock as Kanor walked away, shaking his head in disgust.  
  
"John."  
  
"Don't say it Barb," John replied. "The damage is done."  
  
***  
  
DK could hear his heart beating in his ears and his breathing came out in hard gasps as he weaved in and out of the side streets and alleys. It was his own fault; he never exercised like he should have. He paused along the side of a trash bin and crouched down to catch his breath. There were no signs of Peacekeeper law enforcement pursuing him, but that would change.  
  
The plan had gone from bad to worse. Place the virus chip into the Peacekeeper's master control to their computer network and destroy all the weapons projects they were working on. It should have been simple.  
  
Who knew the Peacekeepers would change the access codes to the entrances on a workday without prior notice to all personnel? The few resistance members that made it through before the klaxons went off were quickly cut down by Peacekeeper security, and he had no cover for an escape. And the idiot computer hacker who was supposed to interrupt the cameras and alarm sensors failed to do his part. And to think, he had received a shining recommendation about his abilities from Lowell, not to mention a large sum of money for his services.  
  
It all just went so bad.  
  
He managed quickly to find the escape chute the Peacekeepers built for quick evacuation of the building, and reached the streets fairly quick. Removing his white lab coat and throwing it into the bin, he scanned the street back and forth before running up the block to a getaway car parked nearby. At least he thought of some kind of back up plan.  
  
Perhaps if he told John more about what they were planning, the operation may not have gone pear-shaped. But he had hesitated; all the drinking John had done for the past two years could have made him a liability. But it was too late for recriminations. Once he was free and clear, he would try and contact him. Walking quickly down the street, he stuck close to the shadows, hoping they would afford him some cover.  
  
He failed to notice two females silhouetted directly above him moving along the ledge of the building. They were quick and silent; stalking him like a predator stalks its prey.  
  
There was no one on the street as he crossed the intersection to the yellow van that was parked on the other side. He was almost home free. Relief washed over him- he just needed to get to the safe house.  
  
The female appeared out of nowhere, landing on the van's roof with a jarring thud. DK stopped dead in his tracks, and felt his heart leap. A woman was a surprise, but not unexpected. She was clad in a tight black outfit with protective pads around the joints. A gauntlet covered one arm and sleek oval goggles concealed her eyes. It was the uniform of a Peacekeeper hunter.  
  
"Don't move, human, you're under arrest for attempted sabotage! Surrender yourself, or we'll take you in by force!"  
  
"Choke on this."  
  
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the mini pulse pistol he had managed to procure from a dead guard just before leaving the building. He fired wildly, unused to the weapon's recoil. The woman easily dodged the bursts and somersaulted down in front of him, knocking the pistol from his hands and striking him with a lightning-fast kick.  
  
DK scrambled to his feet and ran around the nearest corner, not bothering to see if she pursued. He barely made it past a fire hydrant when a second one swung into view on a thin strand of cable. She landed gracefully on the roof of a magazine stand and brought down her weapon to bear on him. It was a combination between a pulse rifle and a crossbow. Aiming directly at him, she fired a ball-tipped bolt from the crossbow. Air escaped his lungs as the impact of the projectile knocked him flat on his back and found him covered in a snare net.  
  
Looking up, the female's head was directly in front of the sun as it shone down into his eyes. He could see long raven-black tresses blowing around her pale face, its smoothness broken only by the goggles that concealed her eyes. It was the last thing he saw before a pantak jab from her sent him into unconsciousness.  
  
***  
  
"What happened? What did they do to him?"  
  
John ran behind Kanor, flanked by Peacekeeper security on both sides. He was anxious to hear anything on DK's fate, but no one was talking.  
  
"The hunters apprehended him only a few blocks away," Kanor said, clearly irritated. "We are going to question him and how he tried to sabotage us. He didn't plan it very well, did he?"  
  
"I wouldn't know, Dr. Kanor."  
  
Kanor snorted. He did not believe it for a moment, but priorities demanded he concentrate on the situation at hand. Crichton and his associates could always be questioned later.  
  
They approached an armored vehicle where DK was standing, with a pair of handcuffs shackling him. Peacekeeper enforcement officers stood around, with weapons aimed point blank. The two hunters stood off to the side, conversing with Commissioner Crais, who had just arrived on the scene. DK remained silent, glancing at John out of the corner of his eyes.  
  
"Excellent work, commissioner!" Kanor said as he approached. "I commend your people. Not even a full arn has passed and they have already captured this criminal."  
  
"As I said earlier, Dr. Kanor, Gotham's streets will be kept safe and patrolled efficiently under my authority." Crais smiled uncomfortably. He was unused to praise.  
  
"They are, indeed." Kanor turned his attention to DK. "You disappoint me, DK. You were such a good scientist. Such a pity you had to be drawn to such hopeless causes. Did you really think you would get away with trying to destroy the hard work our people have done on this world?"  
  
DK smiled. "I guess I'm tired of being a lapdog to you and your masters, unlike some of my co-workers here." He focused his stare at John.  
  
John knew the man he considered his best friend was only trying to protect him, but words stung him again in the space of twenty-four hours. If Kanor suspected he knew of any affiliation with the Earth resistance, everyone would be questioned- or worse. He hid his emotions the best he could.  
  
"So you insist you and the dead resistance members in the tower acted entirely on your own?" Kanor's eyebrow arched slightly as he asked the question. "That seems a little hard to believe. I think a thorough questioning of all human personnel is in order. We may yet ascertain the answers we seek."  
  
"DK," John said, forcing himself to speak. "Why did you do this? Do you know what you've done? This is stupid. You've turned against your friends." Barbara appeared next to John, exhausted from running to catch up.  
  
"You're the one who's turned!" He screamed. "You're a goddamn traitor to your own people, Crichton! You want to live under the boots of these bastards, that's your decision. Me, I'd rather go down fighting!"  
  
What happened next they were not prepared for. Peacekeeper hubris frequently prevented them from learning from simple mistakes, particularly binding prisoners from the front. Were DK's hand bound behind him, he would not have been able to slam his body against the guard in front of him and unsheathed his pulse pistol- which he did before anyone could stop him.  
  
"Look out!" Kanor cried. "He has a weapon!"  
  
"FREEDOM!" DK shouted as he squeezed the trigger of the pulse pistol.  
  
The shots went in all directions, but avoided the area John stood with Barbara and Dr. Kanor. Instantly, two guards went down in a heap and a third took a grazing on his shoulder. It was his last act of defiance as the remaining Peacekeepers aimed their pulse weapons at him and cut him to pieces. His body convulsed in a spastic dance like a broken marionette as bolts of energy tore into him, burning his flesh and tearing apart his insides.  
  
Closing his eyes tight, John desperately fought the urge to cry out.  
  
Give no indication of how it affects you.  
  
DK's voice sounded out in his head: Don't let my death be for nothing. He kept his head down, his face grimacing to the hardness of rock. He held Barbara tight, letting her weep into his chest. Her tears stained the front of his shirt.  
  
Don't let them see you cry.  
  
And then, everything went silent.  
  
Opening his eyes, John could only catch a glimpse of DK's smoldering corpse, already being gathered up to be casually disposed of. Traitors were not given proper burials. The body would be incinerated, no mourners, witnesses, family or friends in attendance. No one to recognize he was here once. No one to recognize he had made a stand, no matter how futile it was.  
  
"A pity this was. Now, we may never know who all his accomplices were. But, your men did do an admirable job, Commissioner Crais," Kanor said, oblivious to the fact Crais lost two men and a third injured by a prisoner already in custody.  
  
Crais watched silently as the body of DK was put in the back of the troop vehicle the human had stood in front of only microts before. "My men were merely acting on instinct, Dr. Kanor. Things like this come with the job.unfortunately." Crais frowned.  
  
It was his first day acting as commissioner, and already there was death. Casualties were expected during a Peacekeeper's career, he had accepted that. But it was his men that were lying on the ground as well, dead from simple carelessness. It was nothing to be proud of. He hated this part of the job, despite what others would say of all Peacekeepers in general.  
  
"If you will excuse me Doctor, I have to see that this business is finished up." Crais turned to the two officers he had been conversing with. "Huntress Chatto, Huntress Sun? This way, please."  
  
The hunters trailed behind Crais as he walked through the throng of security. Passing by, the dark haired one turned her head and met Johns gaze. Whoever she was, she was attractive; alabaster skin contrasted smoothly against the black form-fitting armor she wore. He looked squarely into her eyes, covered by goggles designed for night viewing and concealing her identity, and saw his reflection staring back at him in duplicate. For a moment, her lips parted, as if she were going to speak.  
  
And then she was gone. A helmeted Peacekeeper guard blocked his view and she disappeared into the growing crowd with the others. A wailing noise broke him out of his daze. It was not coming from the vehicle that departed, carrying DK's corpse. There was a little girl in the crowd was crying, her young mother trying in vain to calm her fears.  
  
"They killed him, Mommy! The bad men killed him! I hate them!" The child wailed pitifully.  
  
"Shh. hush, Caitlin," her mother said, looking nervous. Even mothers feared their children's passion if it became untethered.  
  
"I wish Batman were here, he'd stop the bad men!"  
  
"Caitlin! Stop it! Do you want them to hear you?"  
  
"I want Batman. I want Batman." The child's sobbing continued.  
  
John watched on. Perhaps the little girl had the bad dream, too. How did she know about the Batman? The stories reached even the young, giving them some vain sense of hope. She was even younger than he had been when his parents died. He could almost be envious. She still had her mother.  
  
And it was three times in two days that the name Batman came to him. It seemed like more than a coincidence. Fate was dealing a cruel hand to him.  
  
"John," Barbara said. "We should go now." She touched his cheek gently; hers was still wet with tears.  
  
"Yes, time to get back to work, Dr. Crichton," Kanor said sternly. "There is nothing more to see. It's all over." Kanor walked away.  
  
Rage burned in John's eyes. "No, it isn't," he said under his breath.  
  
***  
  
Part 2: Night Falls  
  
John leaned forward in his chair with his hands folded while he listened to the message on his answering machine. Anger slowly boiled inside of him from the images of the past day still burning in his mind.  
  
"Dr. Crichton, in an effort to find out the answers to the feeble attempt at sabotage that occurred today, Commissioner Crais has issued instructions for all human and Sebacean personnel to submit to questioning to gain any information that may have been overlooked. Your appointment is tomorrow at 1:30, by the Earth clock. Don't mess up, John. I would suggest you curtail your drinking, as well. You're one of the most brilliant members on our staff. Your breakthroughs have aided us greatly. I would hate to see your smoldering remains lying on the street like your associates were earlier this afternoon. Until then, have a good day, Doctor."  
  
That was his breaking point. He stood up abruptly, grabbed the answering machine and smashed it against the wall. Their plan to cripple their Peacekeeper jailers had crashed and burned, his best friend was dead and he really felt like a traitor to humanity. DK's final words haunted him, even if they were only spoken to protect him and the others.  
  
He picked up the glass of Scotch he had poured and swallowed the remains. It was the last of the bottle. 'Just say no' had not applied since the Peacekeepers ruined his life.  
  
Unfortunately, drinking did not make the guilt go away.  
  
You will not find the answers in a bottle.  
  
The message from the night before had said something about that as well. Who could have known that? And what did it all mean? Breach the northern perimeter and travel twenty kilometers to the manor ruins. What manor?  
  
John reached for his keys, instinctively knowing the trip he was going to take. He gave the apartment the once over to make sure there was no Earth resistance material left. He was not sure if he would be coming back, but just in case, it was best not to leave anything they could use to hang him with. He wanted to call Barbara to see how she was holding up, but decided against it. It would be best for now that no one knew where he was going, since he himself was not entirely sure.  
  
Turning over the ignition, the car quickly sped towards the northern part of the city. All of Gotham City was surrounded by a walled perimeter, much like Berlin had been during the Cold War of the twentieth century. The human population was not allowed to roam the countryside without special permission. Only closely guarded farming collectives and mines were out in the rural areas, for the purpose of raising crops for the city populations, or for prison labor. Where exactly a manor would be, intact or otherwise, he could not even hazard a guess.  
  
It was early in the evening and there some daylight still remained as he reached the checkpoint gate where vehicles entered and exited the northern perimeter. Only then did it dawn on him he did not have an exit permit or even a legitimate reason to be there. He had rarely ever seen the gates in this part of the city, let alone drove through them. It was too late; the guards could see him approaching. Turning around would look suspicious. Perhaps he could just speed up and knock the gate down. It was only a chain link fence, after all.  
  
And it was just pulse weapons that cooked DK's flesh in seconds.  
  
A pair of Peacekeeper guards stood along each side and motioned for him to stop. Both were carrying pulse rifles, but their black reflective helmets were off, revealing young unblemished faces: fresh recruits. He began formulating the possibility of bluffing his way through the gate. How hard could it be to fool a couple of kids?  
  
"What is your destination?" The one guard asked, trying to act as professional as he could. There was little traffic through the northern gates, so many of the guards fought off boredom as part of the job.  
  
"Raven's Gate Farming Collective, nearby." John said. "I'm going for a quality control inspection."  
  
"What? At this time of the day?"  
  
"Yeah, Somebody found a toe in their hotdog." He could always try a little levity. Being young, they might be swayed a little.  
  
They did not even crack a smile. "We need to see your identification and your exit permit."  
  
He pulled out his identification card from Peacekeeper Headquarters that he carried, hoping it would be enough.  
  
"Exit permit, please."  
  
I have no exit permit," John said sternly. He looked the guard straight in the eye, hoping for a Zen moment, one where they would take his word and let him drive through with no hassles. There was no such luck.  
  
"Step out of the car."  
  
"Look, I'm in a hurry. I-"  
  
"Step out of the car." The guards raised their pulse rifles at him.  
  
He tensed and slowly stepped out of the vehicle. One guard kept his weapon aimed at him while the other began to search the car.  
  
"Well, look at this," the guard said. He reached down and pulled something from the floor of the passenger side. It was one of the Earth resistance pamphlets. In his rush to leave, he forgot he had left one in the car.  
  
"Looks like we got an Earth resistance sympathizer here, Thonn. And one who works for our side no less." The guard walked around the car to John. "Peacekeeper High Command doesn't take traitors in their midst very lightly."  
  
The other guard laughed. "They'll take you apart like that nurfer who got shot earlier today."  
  
John's anger began to grow. "Shut up."  
  
"You shut up. You're in a lot of trouble, Earth trash." The other guard began to push his fingers against the back of John's head. "They may even send you to Arkham Asylum. I hear the human females there got it real hard. The guards like to have their way with-"  
  
He snapped. Turning hard, he slammed his fist full force into the taunting guard's face. All his pent-up anger and frustration came rushing out in an instant.  
  
The other guard, startled at the sudden attack, stepped forward to fire his weapon. John wheeled, grabbed the pulse rifle by the barrel, and yanked it from the surprised Peacekeeper. John bought the rifle up and swung hard at the man, striking him in the head.  
  
As the guard went down, the other one got back up and grabbed him from behind, trying to get him in a headlock. John lifted him off the ground and threw his weight against the small booth behind them, the impact knocking the guard off of him. Before he could react, he grabbed him and began punching him again and again. He could not stop his assault, even though the guard was already unconscious.  
  
Coming to his senses, he let go of the guard, his face a bloody pulp. The other guard was knocked out from the blow from the pulse rifle. John stood there for a moment; breathing hard and feeling his blood pump so hard it hurt his chest. The guards were not dead, but there was no way he could get out of the situation without retribution.  
  
Punching the large red button located on the side of the booth, he jumped into the car and punched the gas, spinning tires as he raced away from the gates. Night was approaching fast, and he wanted to reach this manor, wherever it was, if he still could.  
  
The winding roads were cracked and laden with potholes from years of neglect. John carefully drove around them, watching his odometer to gauge the distance he traveled, waiting for the sight of a manor to appear. As he drove along the roads, he was at least glad to see the forests were still intact and beginning their transformation into a pallet of reds, yellows and orange as autumn came into full bloom. He even saw an occasional deer grazing in a meadow off the road. There was no sign yet of pursuit from the Peacekeepers. Maybe he got lucky and his journey would go smoothly.  
  
The flash and explosion of a pulse weapons blast exploding on the road directly behind him told him otherwise. Twice in one day, and misfortune still had not let him down. In his rearview mirror, John saw the shape of a Marauder flying above the tree line.  
  
Frantically, he swerved his car about; trying to steer clear of the energy bursts the Marauder rained down on him as well avoiding flying off the road into the steep inclines that were appearing to his right. The sky was growing dark, making it harder to see, but he did not dare turn on his headlights, lest he give the Marauder a clear target.  
  
A stray burst razed the rear left tire of his car, blowing it apart. Rubber flew in fragments as he struggled to control the swerving vehicle. Despite his skill, he could not regain control at the speed he was moving and it crossed over the railing, careening down a steep ridge and disappeared through the undergrowth. John slammed his foot on the brakes, hoping to stop a lethal impact against a tree or rock.  
  
The shrubs on the hill slowed him down until the car slammed hard against a thick oak. John's head bounced harmlessly against the air bag that deployed from the steering wheel. He leaned his head against the bag for several moments before sitting up straight again. He checked himself for any serious injuries- a few cuts and scrapes, nothing more. The sound of the Marauder landing nearby reached his ears, as he struggled free of the car.  
  
Looking back at his car, there was no way to back it out of the position it was stuck in, let alone get it back on the road. It was totaled. He had a better chance in the forest, where dense tree cover and the darkness would hide him from the commandos. From everything he heard about them, they were worse than bloodhounds.  
  
He ran using what was left of the light to dodge around trees, thorny shrubs, and anything he might trip over. The underbrush tore at his clothes, mud closed around his shoes and the branches of trees reached out at grotesque angles, seeming to come alive to seize him, all in the service of the Peacekeepers. His breath came in hard gasps, howling with each exhalation. His lungs burned despite the cool October breeze whispering through the woods. He only stopped momentarily to faintly make out the voices of the commandos as they continued their pursuit, the Marauder itself circling the area overhead, searching for a trace of him.  
  
He ran for hours. His legs became bruised and bleeding from crashing into jagged rock and sharp branches, his shirt and skin were damp with perspiration and his whole body ached. But he pressed on- fear of capture was a strong motivator as much as his own determination. Sounds from far behind told him the commandos had not ceased the chase. All he could do was stop for a few spare minutes to catch his breath, and hope he was far enough ahead to avoid them. And if, by some small chance, he could elude capture, what would he do next?  
  
***  
  
Exhaustion overtook him and he collapsed at the edge of the woods. The forest cover had disappeared. An open meadow lay before him, with a cragged hill at its far end.  
  
John stood back up, and leaned against a tree, his breathing labored. All the drinking had taken a toll on his physique. He had run for hours, struggling to keep ahead of the commandos and the Marauder. They had not caught him yet, but the pursuit was relentless. The chase dragged on all night and he had found no manor, nor any sanctuary to avoid them. Maybe it was all a hoax. It was too late for recriminations anyway. He assaulted two Peacekeeper guards, left the city without clearance and made himself look suspicious by fleeing. Too bad there were no more supplies of arsenic or cyanide.  
  
The hill was a good quarter mile away from the edge of the woods. Hopefully, the forest continued on the other side. A point of light began to shine through a crag of rock on top of the hill. Dawn was now approaching.  
  
John's eyes focused tighter on the top of the hill, or what he had thought was one. It was a structure. The morning light expanded in the opening on the hill, creating the outline of a window. Slowly an outline revealed the cracks and ruins of walls and towers. The hill was a foundation with a huge ruin stretched across it. It had to be the manor, or the remains of one.  
  
Seizing the renewed opportunity, he broke out in a run across the field. If he could reach it in time, he could hide from the commandos. Its size became apparent the closer he got. Whoever had lived there had been richer than the Rockefellers; it was as much a castle as a manor. Its walls were partially collapsed towards the back and sides, its many windows broken and vines and other weeds had taken residence inside the ruins as well as all around the building. Whatever disaster had visited it, it still resisted deterioration.  
  
Climbing up the hill to the foundation, he heard voices yelling at him across the meadow. Looking back, the commandos had cleared the woods and spotted him. There were four of them, fully armed, with the fifth one flying around nearby in the Marauder.  
  
"Lt. Melkor! There he is!"  
  
Bursts from pulse rifles exploded all around him as he dodged around the rubble at the foundation's base. He entered the manor through a gaping hole in the back of the rear wall, the sounds of pulse weapons striking the thick stone. As he jumped through, he could hear the sound of the Marauder coming in close over the treetops.  
  
The manor was ornate, with heavily decorated rooms showing traces of its former splendor. The remains of crystal chandeliers still hung delicately in several rooms. Tattered tapestries draped some of the windows, with colors still vivid despite the years of wear and tear. Large pieces of carved furniture still remained intact, only dust coated the grandeur they once eluded. Plaster and wooden beams littered the floor and marred the opulence of the rooms. However long it had been like this, looters had failed to confiscate many of the valuables.  
  
John concentrated on finding some kind of weapon. Anything he could use to defend himself would aid his situation considerably. Maybe there were spears or swords hanging on the walls in one of the rooms? Even an old musket would be helpful. If he were going to die, he would rather go down swinging and shooting.  
  
Entering a room that served as the manors study the muffled sounds of the commandos entering the ruins reached him. If something did not happen quickly, his flight to this place would have been for nothing.  
  
Approaching the bookcases, he scanned the few remaining books left on the shelves. Throwing a heavy book at a commando was not an ideal option, but he needed something. Dusty, vintage copies still sat on the shelves: Crime and Punishment, The Divine Comedy, Collected Works of Shakespeare, Atlas Shrugged, Beyond Good and Evil and The Jewish Question caught his attention.  
  
"Up here! Spread out! He has to be in one of these rooms."  
  
An almost inaudible hiss caused him to turn around. One of the bookcases silently swung open and revealed a brass pole that he had seen in old firehouses. John looked down the chamber to see where the pole led. A deep black maw stared back at him. The approaching footsteps of the Peacekeepers told him his choices had run out.  
  
Wrapping his arms and legs around the pole, he slid down into the unfamiliar darkness. Looking up, the bookcase closed again, removing any trace he had been in the study. The Peacekeepers entered the room, examined it, and left just as quickly, still unable to locate him.  
  
His feet finally struck bottom. As they did, lights came on, illuminating a vast cavern. John stood frozen in the spot he had landed, looking around in astonishment. Some kind of command center was set up towards the middle of the cavern. In the center was a dais with computer equipment and monitors checking systems and regional broadcasts. At one end, there were several vehicles parked, their details cloaked in shadows. At the other end, there was an assortment of odd curios: an oversized Lincoln penny stood upright at the far end, flanked by a giant life-size replica of a Tyrannosaurus Rex and what looked like a giant typewriter. Several glass booths displayed unusual outfits- fetish wear, perhaps. Each one was lit from the inside, showcasing their details.  
  
He walked among the items, greeting them with a combination of disbelief mixed with wonder. Unlike the burned out manor up above, the cave was active and well maintained. Whoever built it was still occupying and using it. There was no trace of dust or ruination that had visited the giant home above him. But what was the purpose of this place? Was it a Peacekeeper installation? Did they even know about it?  
  
Walking up the stairs to the dais in the center of the chamber, he scanned the controls, looking for something that might remotely clue him in. A large green button blinked on and off on the center of the console. Shrugging his shoulders, he pressed it. It was good a place to start as any.  
  
A large flat monitor mounted on the cave wall began to glow and flutter. A face slowly came into focus on the screen. It was a man- older, judging by his gray hair and countenance, but with an intense gaze that demanded John's full attention, which he got without hesitation.  
  
"Good morning, Dr. Crichton." The man said to John, whose mouth hung open in surprise. "I've been waiting for you for quite some time. My name is Bruce Wayne."  
  
To be continued. 


	2. Farscape/Batman: The Dark Knight and the...

Farscape/Batman: Dark Knight, Rising Son, Pt. 2  
  
By: Spacelord  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Adult situations, profanity and violence).  
  
Summary: Batman returns to Gotham and begins the battle to free Earth from the Peacekeepers. Pursuing Batman is a Peacekeeper huntress named Aeryn Sun. Will she be friend or foe? A secret from her past may make all the difference.  
  
Spoilers: None, this is AU. I have placed the characters of Farscape into the world of Batman.  
  
Disclaimers: See part 1 for details.  
  
Part 3: The Dark Knight Awakens  
  
Crais and Kanor stood in the middle of the large circular room, their eyes anxiously darting down every few moments at the floor beneath them. Rarely were individuals allowed to see the upper sections of the Peacekeeper Tower where Scorpius himself dwelled. The upper quarter of the building was in fact, mostly empty space, which is exactly what the two men were looking at beneath their feet.  
  
The technology used to render metal invisible was still relatively new, even among the Peacekeepers. The image of them standing on a transparent floor, seemingly floating over one hundred and eighty feet in the air over a vast interior arboretum that spread out below them was dizzying, to say the least. The tallest of the trees that were planted in the contained ecosphere was still at least thirty feet below where they stood. Crais found the whole scene baffling. It reminded him of flying above treetop level in a prowler, only here he was merely standing in midair, glancing at a forest beneath him.  
  
"Breathtaking, is it not? I find it very relaxing when I need to put my mind at ease. One can almost imagine themselves as a spirit floating amongst the heavens, if one actually believed in such things."  
  
Turning to the sound of the voice, Crais and Kanor watched the spectral form of Scorpius enter the chamber. Captain Braca, his personal assistant, flanking him on his right.  
  
"It is indeed, sir," said Crais. "The view is magnificent up here. I can see why you have made it your personal dwelling."  
  
Scorpius raised his head slightly. "Ah, yes. You are Commissioner Crais? I must commend you on the quick and efficient job you and your people did in apprehending the human terrorist. You saved us all the trouble of worrying about another traitor in our midst."  
  
Crais bowed his head slightly as Scorpius walked past him. "But you, doctor, you disappoint me very much." He approached Kanor, who was beginning to shift back and forth uncomfortably. "We came very close to losing all the precious work that will eventually tip the balance of power in our favor. Or do I have to remind you of our conflict with the Scarrans and the Nebari?"  
  
"N-no. of course not, sir," Kanor said nervously. "But the safeguards we installed against such potential attacks worked perfectly. They were-"  
  
"Not enough!" With his right arm, Scorpius grabbed Kanor by his neck and lifted him off the clear floor. "We are working against time, Dr. Kanor. This new weapon we are developing will be operational within the time that I specified. I will not tolerate any kind of interference!" Scorpius' voice changed from the light soothing tone he normally used to the deep-throated growl that evolved from his Scarran half.  
  
Kanor gasped for air. He could only make faint gurgling sounds as he looked into the pale corpselike visage of Scorpius. He was considered an abomination among Sebaceans, but their leader nonetheless. Tyrant would have been the better description to them.  
  
Kanor was mere inches from his face, and he could make out the details of his bloodshot eyes, the cracked surface of his skin and the rotting stench from his stained teeth. Kanor managed to gasp out a response as he felt himself blacking out.  
  
"We. will double. our efforts and the. safety pre-precautions."  
  
Scorpius released his grip. The doctor fell to the floor in a heap, gulping fresh air into starved lungs.  
  
"See that you do, doctor."  
  
Scorpius turned to leave. "Come, captain. We have much to do. Good day, doctor, and, best of luck with your new assignment, commissioner." Braca fell in behind the despot, remaining silent throughout the entire discussion.  
  
Crais leaned over to help Kanor up as Scorpius and Braca walked back out the door. Kanor rubbed his throat and wiped the tears away from his eyes as he composed himself.  
  
"As you can now see, commissioner," Kanor said through a raspy voice. We cannot afford mistakes."  
  
Crais frowned. "Then we best not make them."  
  
The two men looked down at the floor once more. The transparency faded, and it slowly turned solid again, taking away the view of the forest below.  
  
***  
  
Confused would be an understatement. John stared at the giant video screen, visibly dumbstruck. "You're who?"  
  
The image on the screen smiled. "My name is Bruce Wayne. In life I was also known as Batman. Welcome to the Bat Cave."  
  
"Batman. Bat Cave? Oh, I don't believe this. You mean you really were real?" John said. "You weren't just some story my Dad once told me?"  
  
Bruce laughed. "I was very real, John. I protected Gotham City for many years against criminals and any that threatened the safety and freedom of its citizens."  
  
"It was you, wasn't it? You were the one who sent me that message on my computer."  
  
"Yes, I did. Although the Peacekeepers aren't aware of it, I use their surveillance systems to watch what goes on in Gotham. I can also enter their data banks without them knowing. I've spent the last thirty years studying, replicating and even improving on their technology. I know what they know, and use it to my advantage."  
  
John nodded, taking the words at face value, but still trying to absorb what he had seen so far. "Quite an operation you got here. So, I guess the $100,000 question is, why did you invite me here?"  
  
"John, I'm charging you with carrying on my work. I want you to be the next Batman."  
  
"What?" John blinked and waited for the next punch line, but Bruce's face looked absolutely serious. "Me? Why me?"  
  
"I've watched you for a long time now. Our lives are very similar, yours and mine. We both lost our parents at a very young age to violence. You have a brilliant mind; you're in excellent physical shape. well, until you recently began your heavy drinking. But we'll work on that."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, slow down a minute," John said, slightly irritated. "This is going too fast. Where are you? Why don't you come out where I can see you? I feel like I'm talking to Max Headroom."  
  
"I'm afraid I can't, John. I know you have a lot of questions, but everything will be answered soon. In the meantime, I want you to have something to eat and get some rest. You had a long night, from what I've seen. There's no need to worry though. The Peacekeepers have been dealt with. They don't know we're down here. We have safeguards in place in the event they did find us. And now, ALFRED is bringing you some food."  
  
John looked around. "Alfred?"  
  
"Yes," Bruce said, as a tall silver robot silently glided into view holding a tray of steaming food. "ALFRED stands for All-purpose, Free-moving, Repair/Electronics Darter. I named him after my old butler. He was a dear friend of mine."  
  
John could not help but smile as the robot approached. Its head was a smooth silver sphere with two white lights for eyes and a series of holes for its mouth. Best of all, it was wearing black coattails- like a real butler.  
  
"Good morning, Master John," ALFRED said in a synthesized voice. "I have prepared you some buttermilk pancakes, bacon, a fruit cup and some orange juice. Please eat while it is still warm. Master Bruce had a terrible reputation for leaving the meals I made go cold."  
  
John scratched his head and sighed. Things could not get any stranger. Complying, he sat down and quietly ate everything on the tray while ALFRED waited. He must have been hungrier than he realized. His flight through the forest had taken a lot out of him. He desperately wanted to sleep, and the urge was becoming irresistible as ALFRED removed the tray.  
  
"ALFRED will show you the living quarters we have down here," Bruce said. "Once you've rested and cleaned up, we'll talk more."  
  
John watched as Bruce's image faded from the video screen. He got up and followed ALFRED through a set of sliding doors into an ornately decorated room filled with the remaining furnishings of the manor above him. There was a large canopied bed in the corner- and it was practically calling his name.  
  
"Clean up and rest yourself now, Master John," ALFRED said. "It is well past 8:00 am. You have been up the better part of twenty-four hours. Master Bruce will converse with you again later. If you need anything, do not hesitate to pull the cord and summon me." He indicated the braided gold cord that hung down next to the bed. "I will make any accommodations to ensure your comfort while you are here with us."  
  
"Thanks Alfred."  
  
The robotic servant departed, leaving him alone. John sat down on the edge of the bed, gauging its comfort. Only now, after the long and harrowing night, did his body relax. There were so many questions, but only sleep occupied his thoughts now.  
  
This is where it all begins.  
  
***  
  
John awoke with a start. He had dreamed again of the evil men surrounding him and his parents, the fear, the flash of light and the look on their faces as they died and the shadow that covered them.  
  
He lay in the bed perfectly still, staring up at its canopied ceiling and listened to the rhythm of his breathing, slowing down as he came out of sleep. He began to look around at the unfamiliar surroundings. It was not his apartment, since there were no windows. The furniture that was present was far too fancy for anything his tastes cared for.  
  
Not his home, he was still in the Bat Cave.  
  
He sat up and placed his bare feet down on the elaborate Oriental rug that covered the hard floor. He reached out and pulled down on the gold cord to summon ALFRED.  
  
He used the shower earlier that was adjacent to the bedroom before going to sleep, washing away hours of dirt and sweat he had accumulated during his night flight from the Peacekeepers. He then put on the silk pajamas that ALFRED had laid out for him and slid under soft, clean sheets. Stretching out his arms, he yawned deeply. He had slept like the dead, and not just dreamed about them.  
  
Finding the manor was a godsend. But finding the Bat Cave underneath its remains had been an unexpected shock. His mind was still swimming with questions before he went to sleep and waking up did not change that. The image of Bruce Wayne had said he called him here to charge him with becoming the new Batman.  
  
The new Batman. He still was trying to comprehend that there had even been a Batman.  
  
ALFRED appeared in the doorway, with a set of black clothing draped over one of his mechanical arms. "Good Afternoon, Master John. I have bought you a clean set of clothes. While I am preparing dinner, Master Bruce would like to speak with you."  
  
John smiled slightly. "Good. I need to talk his ears off about a lot of things. What time is it, anyway?"  
  
"5:15 pm, Master John. You slept for quite some time. This is very good, as it will place you in cycle with the training that Master Bruce is preparing for you."  
  
"Cycle of training?"  
  
***  
  
"All right, this is very impressive, I admit, but it still doesn't answer my question." John looked back towards the screen at the image of Bruce, turning away from the black suit with the image of a bat on its chest that sat behind the lit glass booth.  
  
Bruce's eyes followed him warily as he walked across the floor to the main console. "John, when the Peacekeepers came to Earth, we were not prepared either for their intentions or their superior technology. They defeated the Earth's forces in a very short time and have been plundering our resources ever since. They want complete mastery of space, and there are resources here not found on other worlds to aid them in that. While I was Batman, I was not prepared to deal with them. But now."  
  
"Now you need me?"  
  
He smiled slightly. "I consider you a worthy successor. I've watched your life for a long time. I know you've worked to help the Earth resistance. I also know you've lost friends and loved ones, and that you are a moral person, but bitterness is eating away at you. I'm now offering you the perfect solution to helping your fellow humans."  
  
"You want to make me into a soldier? How many Peacekeepers do you think one guy can snuff out? They occupy the whole goddamned planet, you know."  
  
"You don't understand, John. I will not train you to kill. The Batman does not kill. He fights to protect life. And he is not a gutter mouth, either. Please curb your profanity."  
  
He laughed sarcastically. Bruce Wayne- the last Boy Scout. The man was just too noble to be true. "That's great, Bruce. You want me to just rough them up? Scare them a little? In case you haven't noticed, they don't play fair, plus they do have all the big guns. Plus, I'm a little too old for you to be bawling me out for cussing."  
  
Bruce's eyes narrowed slightly on the screen. "Understood. But, you underestimate the power of fear, John. Look how fear affects you when you dream about your parent's death."  
  
John looked up at him, surprised. "How do you know about that?"  
  
"Like I said, I've studied you, to determine if you were worthy. I know your parents were gunned down in front of you in a dark alley, just like mine were. In fact, it was the exact same alley. Synchronicity is strange that way."  
  
"Did you also know my father once told me every man gets a chance to be his own hero?"  
  
Bruce hesitated, before he answered. "Yes."  
  
John remained silent.  
  
"Let me ask you this," Bruce said. "When they died, how did you feel?"  
  
He lowered his head. It was difficult for him to think about. Words often failed to describe that moment. "I felt. hatred. And fear."  
  
"Yes. Fear is good. But travel lightly. Lose hatred. The Banik slaves used that as a proverb, before the Peacekeepers killed off most of them. John, you must not become that which you seek to destroy. Your actions will not only protect your fellow humans, but you'll inspire those who see your actions."  
  
"I'm only one man, Bruce. This is not fighting a few street thugs. This is an empire operating under the false guise of hired police work. And they don't ask or give quarter. There will be deaths, like it or not."  
  
"I understand that can and will happen. But the Batman stands as a protector as well as justice. We're fighting a war, but we want to stem the tide and prevent the loss of many lives as possible. It's one man that leads nations, empires; one man who sets the example."  
  
"And where are you in all this, Bruce?" John looked across the expanse of the cave, hoping to see some curtained booth where Bruce, playing the great and powerful Oz, would show himself.  
  
"I'm afraid this is as good as it gets, John. I died recently."  
  
John raised an eyebrow. He was dead wrong about it not getting any stranger.  
  
"But I was able to download my consciousness into this computer before I expired. It was a complete sensory download of all my synapses. I managed to duplicate the technology the Peacekeepers possessed to accomplish that, as well as the new equipment you'll be using to fight them, if you accept my offer."  
  
Visions of his parents and of DK floated in his mind, as well as the little girl who cried desperately for the Batman. The dream that haunted him nightly now had a clarity he had never imagined. He first thought it was pre-ordained, but this was not fate that beckoned to him. He felt it on the street after DK was killed. It was serendipity: a fortunate accident. Either way, he was there now, and he treaded a path that allowed no turning back, not even if he wanted to.  
  
"If I do this," John said, "It's not for me, it's for all of them."  
  
Bruce, or his neural remains at least, did not need John to explain who 'they' were. "I wouldn't want you to do it any other way, John."  
  
He nodded. "All right, then. I accept. Let's do this."  
  
***  
  
September 28, 2038  
  
"I know what you just said, but I still don't believe it," Barbara said, growing irritated at the Peacekeeper guard on the other end of the phone. "Why didn't anyone tell us he'd been found? Are you sure it's him?"  
  
The guard made a grunting sound. "You didn't need to know until we were sure. And yes, ma'am, it's him."  
  
Barbara shifted uncomfortably in her chair. It had been almost a year now, and hardly any news. And now this.  
  
"Then send him up. I'll let Dr. Kanor know he's here."  
  
"Yes, Ma'am."  
  
Barbara hung up the phone, and sat back down in her chair, scarcely believing the news. For almost a year he had gone missing. Like DK once was, John was one of her oldest and dearest friends. Her father had served with his on the International Space Station before its destruction. She looked upon him as family, and when he had disappeared.  
  
After several minutes, she could see a tall figure standing in the doorway out of the corner of her eye.  
  
"Hello, Barbara."  
  
She turned to face him. "John?" It was him, in the flesh.  
  
He walked up to her slowly, letting her take in his familiar features. He flashed a big smile. She hesitated, and then embraced him. It had been nine long months, and now she could let herself be relieved. She let herself cry again in his arms.  
  
"You're really back?" She said, in between weeping. "My God, John, I don't believe it, we thought you were dead!" She stood back a moment; still stunned he was alive. He was quite healthy despite a long disappearance. It was like finding out her father was still alive after the ISS tragedy. She had been fortunate enough to have her parents around when she was growing up.  
  
And now, he was back. There had been a story of a man resembling John that had assaulted two guards at the Gotham's northern perimeter and escaped into the country. Peacekeeper Command received a video soon after that, showing a former terrorist thought dead from four cycles before who bore a near-identical resemblance to John. This was made more convincing by the real John Crichton sitting beside him tied up and held for ransom, with the threat of execution hanging over him. Footage of him performing manual labor was also sent to the Peacekeepers to keep them second-guessing. Bruce had woven an elaborate plan over the past eight months, sending Peacekeeper patrols to abandoned warehouses, landfills and ramshackle buildings on the city's outskirts to convince them their top human scientist was a captive of some fictitious terrorist organization. John listened with delight as Barbara went over the elaborate - but false - details of the story that he and Bruce masterminded in order to slip John back into the city without suspicion.  
  
"The guard on the phone said you were found two days ago tied up in a warehouse. Have they been questioning you all this time?"  
  
"Really, Barb, I'm all right." John said, reassuring her. It was a necessary lie, but it had to be convincing, so he could continue on with what he came back for.  
  
"So we can see, Dr. Crichton." Kanor said, as he entered the office. "We should have guessed that the survivors of that attempt at sabotage on us would have tried to kidnap some of our people. We underestimated their ingenuity." He extended his hand. "It's good to have you back, John."  
  
John accepted the handshake without apprehension. "Thanks, Doctor. I'd like to get back to work, now that my little ordeal with the terrorists has ended. I think it would help clear my head."  
  
"Certainly! We look forward to you looking over the work we've done. Without you, it's been much harder for us."  
  
He did his best to hide his satisfaction at that revelation. It would have been the general idea from the start.  
  
"If you will excuse me, I have to attend a meeting with members of Peacekeeper High Command. I'm sure Dr. Gordon here can bring you up to speed with everything we've been doing. Good day, Dr. Crichton." Kanor walked out of the office, giving them a moment alone, to John's relief.  
  
Barbara's smile dropped away. "So John, tell me all about it?"  
  
He shook his head, laughing. "I just spent the past two days telling Peacekeeper interrogation teams all about it. Let's talk about something else. Anything."  
  
***  
  
Part 4: The Dark Knight Returns  
  
Night had arrived early. Fitting, since it was Gotham's natural habitat.  
  
High winds whipped his cape around him in irregular patterns as he stood on the ledge of the skyscraper, silent and still as the stone gargoyles that surrounded him on either side. Casting his eyes downward, he inhaled deeply at the sight of the city streets far below, their distant lights forming the glowing chasm that spread out before him.  
  
John Crichton disappeared for the night. Batman now stood on the ledge of the building looking over Gotham City- his city.  
  
"Any time you're ready, John." Bruce's voice came to him over the radio built into his cowl.  
  
John stretched his arms out by his sides and held his head back. For an instant he stood like a crucifix, a living part of the statuary on the décor of the old building. Leaping forward, he was airborne, free of gravity and plummeting rapidly downwards between the buildings. The windows of the buildings streaked past him in a blur of light and shadow, while the forms on the streets far below were rapidly filling his field of view. The wind roared over his earpieces as his speed increased with the descent.  
  
At seventy feet above ground zero, he extended out his left arm and fired a cable from the gauntlet he wore. A thin braided strand of metal fibers with a small bat-shaped hook shot across his line of sight and anchored to an old brick building.  
  
Muscles that were honed to steel tensed as they absorbed the shift from the freefall, the cable drew tight and it bought his body into a sweeping arc, swinging fully around the building with perfect precision. As he reached the end of the arc, the hook released itself and he dived forward, allowing the momentum to open his cape, its metal armature inside unfolding into leathery black wings. As the cable retracted and readied itself to fire again, the wings carried him on the night breeze like a glider.  
  
"Excellent, John, you did that perfectly. You'll be able to cover a lot more ground in shorter time this way." Bruce sounded pleased.  
  
John repeated the process with the cable and the wings and traveled across the breadth of Gotham's midtown in only minutes. The progression seemed so much easier now than it had when he first began training with Bruce. The darkness concealed him from anyone looking upwards and the design of the suit made him invisible to conventional scanning. He sailed far above the streets, free of the Peacekeeper's yoke. There only remained the need to test him on the streets below before he felt totally confident in his new role.  
  
"Let's cut to the chase, Bruce," John said. He cleared his throat to hide his nervousness. "So, am I supposed to do my bat impression all night, or have you actually found anything for me to do out there yet?"  
  
"Patience, John. It can happen anytime." There was a pause. "Swing over to 28th and Metro, there's a Peacekeeper patrol bothering a woman and her child."  
  
John fired out the cable again and swung towards the far end of Gotham's business section. Using the night vision optics built into the cowl, he could easily spot anything moving on the ground-especially Peacekeepers.  
  
***  
  
"Get away from us!"  
  
The woman and her young daughter were returning from a store when they encountered the patrol. There were five of them, and considering their behavior, patrolling was the last thing on their minds. She held her groceries and her daughter tight against her trembling form.  
  
"Have to say you human females are quite nice for a primitive species. Enough raslak in me, and I wouldn't know the difference between you or Sebacean." The dark-haired Peacekeeper leered over the woman's lean body.  
  
"Leave us alone, we didn't do anything." The woman pleaded.  
  
"C'mon, girl! Be nice. We won't bite, not much anyway." The soldier grabbed the woman by her blouse and knocked her groceries out of her bag. Her child was screaming at the laughing detail of Peacekeepers.  
  
"Leave my mommy alone!"  
  
A large bald male carrying a heavy pulse rifle laughed hard. "I don't think she likes you, Torq. I guess she should join the crowd, eh?"  
  
"Frell you, Dex. Hey, Zamia, shut the brat up, will you? She's too loud."  
  
Zamia scowled. "You shut her up, Torq. This was your idea." The female Peacekeeper had no interest in harassing the helpless human; she could get sex anytime, preferably from males. The remaining two members of their patrol, standing behind her, did nothing but watch on in amusement.  
  
"You got fire, girl." Torq said. "I like that. I haven't recreated in awhile, so be good and you'll even get a treat for your daughter there."  
  
"Don't touch her!" The little girl kicked the soldier in the knee while his companions laughed.  
  
"Caitlin, get away!" Her mother cried out. "Run!"  
  
"Frelling bitch! Torq swung his free arm hard, striking the little girl across her face. She let out a cry as she fell to the ground.  
  
"No!" Her mother cried.  
  
"Frell her," Torq said. "Now, where was I?"  
  
He grabbed the woman and proceeded to tear open her blouse. She looked up into the air, not willing to look in the soldier's eyes or watch his hand groping her. She would not give him the satisfaction. As she did, her eyes widened at the sight she saw bearing down on them.  
  
A dark blur swung past Zamia and Dex, seizing Torq and pulling him into the air above the single streetlight the group stood under.  
  
"What was that?" Zamia exclaimed. "Torq, where are you?"  
  
Torq cried out and a loud crack was heard just before he struck the pavement hard behind the other soldiers, the impact knocking him out.  
  
"Spread out!" Dex shouted. "We're under attack!"  
  
Before they could respond, a cloaked figure landed between them and the woman, who reached for her injured child. He was dressed head to toe in black, with a dark cape covering him and a bright yellow oval in the center of his chest. The silhouetted design of a bat covered it. A cowl covered the man's head that hid most of his face, but he was definitely a man- large powerful, and spoiling for a fight.  
  
"You just made a fatal mistake, whoever you are," Dex growled. "Cut him down, now!"  
  
They raised their pulse rifles to fire. The man in black produced a boomerang-like weapon and hurled it at the soldiers in front of him. The batarang struck across the heads of the other two nameless soldiers, staggering them and sending them crashing against Zamia and Dex.  
  
The man was upon them before they could recover, fists striking against jaws with lightning speed. Only Dex was able to block some of the blows, but he was no match for the man. A single uppercut to Dex's chin finished the fight quickly.  
  
"Hey. look out!"  
  
The man turned at the woman's voice to see Zamia getting back up, pulse pistol out of her holster and ready to fire. He would not reach her before she fired.  
  
He did not need to. Raising his right arm, he activated the other gauntlet he wore. A concussion burst, derived from Tavlek technology, fired and struck the female Peacekeeper like a battering ram. Zamia's feet left the ground, striking the lamppost, the wind knocked out of her. The whole battle lasted all of thirty seconds.  
  
The man walked over to the woman and her child, kneeling down to check her injury. Her mother looked up at him, gratitude pooled in her eyes, despite all the tears.  
  
"Thank you."  
  
He nodded. "She'll be fine. It was just a glancing blow. She should be up and about in no time. The walk home will be safe. I'll see to it."  
  
Caitlin looked up. Her eyes squinted under the light, focusing on the stranger. He spoke in a low, gravelly voice. She saw a hooded face and a bat symbol. Her eyes widened. She recognized him instantly. He was not a dream, he was not a children's fable- it was really him.  
  
"Batman."  
  
John smiled. "Yes, it's me. There's no need to be afraid." He stroked her soft cheek lightly. "You're a brave little girl, to stand up to them like that." He gently helped her to her feet.  
  
"What's your name?" He said to the girl's mother.  
  
"Vicki. And this is Caitlin."  
  
"The two of you will walk these streets again safely, and without fear. I promise you that." He turned and disappeared into the shadows.  
  
Vicki gathered up the groceries with her daughter's help, and they quickly walked away from the unconscious soldiers lying in the shadows.  
  
"I told you, mommy." Caitlin said. "I told you Batman would come back someday and save us!"  
  
She smiled. "Yes, he did, sweetheart. I hope he'll save all of us." She looked up at the night sky. It was clear and the stars were out. For the first time, she felt safe.  
  
***  
  
Per Bruce's instructions, John swung across town several times during the night to potential trouble spots that were detected. He knocked out a drunken pair of off-duty Peacekeepers harassing an old woman for her money. A Marauder that was being repaired in a hangar near the Gotham airfield went up in flames. He attacked several foot patrols in the residential areas and disabled three armored vehicles that were on patrol as well. He also took down a half a dozen human criminals lurking the streets and alleys attacking victims for a wallet or purse to steal.  
  
"So Bruce," John said as he swung from a water tower for the fourth time in one night. "How am I doing?"  
  
"You're doing very well, John," his voice came in, sounding scratchy through the static in the radio. "Although I don't remember us discussing destroying any Peacekeeper military equipment just yet."  
  
"Relax, Bruce. I have a plan of my own. That was their wake-up call. It'll give them something to ponder while we make ourselves known."  
  
"Fine, John. But I would have preferred to start out small, and work our way towards that. We don't want to jeopardize all that we have worked for."  
  
John smiled big, even though Bruce could not see it. "Bruce, you ain't seen nothing yet."  
  
***  
  
Crais looked over the report a second time while Lt. Teeg stood in front of his desk, fidgeting. She never got used to the long silences that occurred when he read bad news. She had served with him on assignment before, but was never sure how he would respond. It made him unpredictable. To her, that was worse than knowing for certain.  
  
"Are you sure of all this?" Crais said, finally looking up at her.  
  
"Yes sir, reports have been streaming in the past few weekens. And they have come from both on and off duty soldiers, as well as some civilians. They all reported the same thing."  
  
"Which is a man in a cape, carrying an arsenal of unfamiliar weapons, and armed with superior fighting skills, who has been attacking Peacekeeper patrols around Gotham City and preventing robberies and attacks on human civilians?" Crais grunted, putting the report down. "It sounds like another one of the human's 'urban legends' that I keep hearing so much about."  
  
Teeg swallowed. "I understand your doubts, sir. But this 'urban legend' has also been responsible for the destruction of several of our Prowlers, Marauders and armored vehicles that patrol the cities. He's also been sabotaging supply convoys meant for off-world transport and giving some of the supplies to the locals."  
  
"And I suppose every one of them have also reported this- what did they call him?" Crais looked at the report again, "Bat-man?"  
  
"Yes sir, they did. The descriptions were exact, right down to the pointed ears on his headpiece."  
  
"Pointed ears?"  
  
How could she explain to him that the man dressed in a rough representation of a flying rodent? "Well, there are elements on his costume that are meant to resemble."  
  
Crais frowned. He did not need a description. "And the equipment that was destroyed, how soon can replacements be brought in?"  
  
"As you know sir, due to the vast distance from Earth to the nearest Peacekeeper controlled territories, it could take almost half a cycle just to re-supply."  
  
"Yes, yes, I understand." He waved his hand, becoming irritated. "In other words, it will take too long. There are already shipments of quartz and indigenous plants that have been lost to this terrorist. Do you know any other world we can obtain these at?"  
  
She shook her head, unable to offer any alternatives.  
  
Then who ever this Batman is, we need to stop his little reign of terror before it reaches the attention of Scorpius himself."  
  
Teeg picked up the report chip and placed it back into her pocket. "What are your orders, sir?"  
  
"I want Officer Chatto and Officer Sun to report here within a half an arn. Tell them I have a classified mission I need them to perform."  
  
"And," he added, "I want immediate results."  
  
***  
  
Part 5: The Sun Also Rises  
  
"Do you see it yet?"  
  
John adjusted the optics in his cowl. The night vision settings turned the images of the warehouse and the vehicle pulling in to it into a sharp outline of green and gray. The increase in magnification bought the vehicle into clearer view.  
  
"I see it, Bruce." He paused for a moment. "Shall we?"  
  
"By all means, proceed."  
  
John had planned the operation for a week and waited hours for the supply truck to arrive. It was part of a supply shipment of magnetic coils to the Peacekeeper Tower for the secret weapons projects that they had been working on for so long. He had explained to Bruce the importance of slowing down the progress of the program and convinced him this mission took highest priority. Now it was only a matter of taking down the skeleton crew that were standing in the florescent light of the warehouse doors and stealing it away, back to the Bat Cave.  
  
Gliding down from the roof across the warehouse parking lot, two quick kicks to their jaws easily stunned the first two guards while the rest succumbed to a smoke grenade projecting sleep gas. Walking victoriously to the truck, he pulled open the loose flap in the back to inspect his prize.  
  
There was nothing. The back of the truck was empty.  
  
John cursed under his breath. "Bruce, I think we've been had."  
  
"Get out of there, John." Bruce said, growing alarmed. "It's a trap!"  
  
Before he could respond, the lights all over the parking lot lit up simultaneously, bathing the warehouse in a brilliant illumination. Unprepared, he raised his arm to cover his eyes against the sudden blinding light. Out of the corner of his eye, he could make out a pair of figures, descending the wall to his right.  
  
"Freeze, renegade!" A female voice shouted. "You are under arrest! Surrender now or we will apprehend you by force!"  
  
"Preferably by force," a second female voice said.  
  
He lowered his arm, defiantly glaring at the two women. They were both dressed in black, with goggles over their eyes. They were Peacekeeper hunters. Both were holding a combination pulse rifle/crossbow weapon.  
  
"All right, Bruce, time for Plan B." John muttered.  
  
Filtered lenses in his cowl instantly came down, blocking the glare of the light. He raised his fists and put his foot forward in defiance.  
  
"Have it your way," The raven-haired huntress said. She raised her weapon to fire the net projectile that was already loaded.  
  
As the projectile fired, a three-foot beam of red light flashed to life on John's gauntlet. With a flashing arc, the expanding net that opened up before him was sliced in half and fell harmlessly to either side of him. The blade made from laser light was based upon the little known Scarran technology stolen from the Peacekeeper databanks. Bruce and he had been very resourceful when designing the Batman's new weapons.  
  
While the raven-haired woman's jaw dropped from surprise, the lighter- haired huntress charged forward to attack. She was faster than him, and more experienced in hand-to-hand combat. Her legs and arms were powerful. She delivered a series of kicks and blows that could cripple a normal man. He blocked several of them and let his armor absorb the rest. After spending a year of training under the greatest unarmed combatant the world had known, he was not about to yield for a second.  
  
Grabbing her arm from an attempted pantak jab, he flipped her and she struck the ground flat on her back, the air jolted right out of her. Fortunately, the Peacekeepers never bothered to learn judo during their long occupation. No sooner than he did, the other huntress joined the fight. She was as skilled as the first one, but John matched her blow for blow.  
  
Her face seemed familiar. It was her smooth fair skin and long black tresses that jarred his memory. Then he remembered. She was the one that had apprehended DK the day he was shot dead. The other one had been there, too.  
  
The memory flooded over him, pain turned defiance into rage.  
  
"You."  
  
She cocked her head slightly; unsure of what he implied.  
  
John rushed in, picked her up off the ground, and threw her into the first huntress who was standing back up, knocking them both down.  
  
Producing a heat grenade from his belt, he tossed it between the women as they struggled to get up. The brilliant burst of heat it emitted used a combination of temperatures to render a Sebacean unconscious, as they lacked the gland necessary to regulate temperature increases.  
  
It was only halfway successful. Walking away, he expected to hear nothing. Instead, he heard one of them getting back up. Turning around, the raven- haired huntress was recovering and reaching for her crossbow/rifle. Why had she not passed out from the heat burst? There was no time to ponder the answer; he quickly dodged a volley of energy bursts from her rifle.  
  
Bruce's voice came back in over the sounds of pulse fire. "John, get to the rooftops. I've detected Peacekeeper reinforcements arriving within a few minutes."  
  
John fired the cable and let the micro motor in the gauntlet pull him up above the rooftops just as the sirens of armored vehicles became audible in the distance. There would be too many for him to deal with. Concentrating on escape was now his first priority. While he did, he failed to notice the huntress trailing him, swinging from a cable of her own.  
  
"That was bad, Bruce." he said, opening his wings to glide over a dilapidated brick building with an old furniture sign mounted on top. "Got too overconfident. I almost blew that one."  
  
"Consider it a life lesson. You reacted well, so learn from your mistakes. Now, look sharp, you're being followed by that one huntress."  
  
He craned his neck to catch a glimpse. "That's the same one that was there when DK was killed. Why wasn't she affected by the heat grenade?"  
  
"We'll worry about that later," Bruce said. "You have to stop her before she signals the other Peacekeeper units and get a fix on our position."  
  
"I know just the thing."  
  
Shifting to the right, John swung across several blocks until he reached a dimly lit block where tall buildings on either side formed a canyon of concrete and steel. He selected a square building that served as a bank and swung towards its right side.  
  
As he swung behind the building, he checked to see if she was still in pursuit. She was there, and gaining quickly. Whoever she was, she was good at what she did.  
  
Swinging high into an arc, John used his wings to brake in midair, and quickly reversed his direction. If he timed this right, he would take her down as she swung past.  
  
The wind rushed against his face as he dived downward to his approaching target. Just as planned, she came around the corner of the building in a graceful sweep, completely surprised and unable to change her forward momentum. The goggles hid her eyes bulging out with surprise as he struck her in midair, knocking the wind right out of her.  
  
Catching her, he glided down to a nearby rooftop and laid her down on the ground, his hand still holding the collar of her outfit in a tight grip. He yanked the goggles off her face, and stared into a pair of scowling blue- gray eyes.  
  
"Who are you?" He demanded.  
  
She looked at him hard. "Officer Aeryn Sun, Retrieval Hunter, Peacekeeper Law Enforcement Liaison. I was sent to capture you."  
  
John grunted in disgust. "I'm sure you know now that's not going to happen. Your trap failed, and your partner is unconscious back there. Now, you can tell Scorpius for me that the Peacekeeper's hold on this world will end soon."  
  
"Really?" She sneered. "What makes you think you can beat us? You're only one man; we're an army fighting for a glorious cause."  
  
"So am I." He pulled out a small container of sleep gas, and sprayed it in her face. He held her tight as she struggled against until she succumbed.  
  
"Good work, John." Bruce said. "Now, return to the Bat Cave. We need to talk."  
  
He looked back at her sleeping form one last time as he swung away, the sound of sirens wailing far below him. She would recover soon, but would have a nasty hangover as a result of the gas.  
  
The impact in mid air had brushed her hair and skin against his face. It smelled of vanilla. He could still taste her in his mouth as he traveled back to the Bat Cave.  
  
***  
  
Aeryn awoke. Her head was pounding from whatever the renegade had sprayed in her face. Sirens wailed and the shapes of Marauders hovered overhead in the sky, their searchlights scanning the area, trying to locate the Batman. He was long gone, of that she was certain, as she struggled to get up.  
  
Jenavian Chatto landed on the roof and walked gracefully as a panther towards her despite her earlier defeat at the hands of the Batman. Pride forbade her from showing any sign of weakness. Aeryn made no move to approach; she was the worse for wear of the two of them.  
  
"Status?" Jenavian said, scanning the rooftop, looking for any traces of his departure.  
  
"The target has escaped," Aeryn said. "He was far stronger and smarter than we had estimated."  
  
"Then it's time to change our tactics."  
  
Crais would not be happy with them failing to capture him, but he was right. Not only was he formidable, but he also became their hunter that night. Words failed to describe him and his peculiar outfit. He was a superb combatant- and handsome, too.  
  
She shook her head, embarrassed, not even able to imagine why that came into her thoughts.  
  
***  
  
"You know this woman?"  
  
John gazed up at the image. It was Aeryn Sun, the Peacekeeper hunter he had encountered earlier in the evening. Bruce could access high-level files in the Peacekeeper's computer network, with satisfying results. John concentrated on the matter at hand, trying his best to hide any interest that was more than casual. Since laying eyes on her, he could not get her out of his mind.  
  
"Yeah," he said, answering Bruce's query. "She's the one I tangoed with tonight. Said she was sent to capture me. You know anything about her?"  
  
"She was born into service with the Peacekeepers. She started out as infantry, but she's been a hunter with Peacekeeper Law Enforcement in Gotham for about three years now. She has Decca seven, high-level security clearance for her file, which is unusual for someone in her position. There's a part that I'm having difficulty accessing. I'll have to work on the decoding."  
  
"Maybe it has something to do with her resistance to the heat grenade earlier tonight," John added. "There is something that is really 'off' about her from the other PKs."  
  
"Perhaps," Bruce replied. "Still, there is something about her that seems very familiar."  
  
"What, to you?"  
  
"Yes. But I can't quite place it yet."  
  
John nodded. "See what you can find out about her. It might be significant."  
  
"Speaking of which," Bruce interrupted. "You still haven't given me clear details on what that shipment was meant for. I know the Peacekeepers are working on weapons projects at the tower, but to what purpose? Even I can't access that part of their network."  
  
"I'm in the dark about it as much as you are, Bruce. They assign us to certain parts of an entire project, and never let us see it as a whole. They get their results that way, without giving out too much information about what it is they're doing. It's been a big disadvantage to information gathering in the Earth resistance movement."  
  
"But this much I can tell you," he added. "I heard a rumor it's supposed to have something to do about shortening the gap between Earth and their home systems. Maybe they're developing a new type of hetch drive. So, maybe this Aeryn Sun knows something. If we can win her to our side."  
  
"Hold that thought." Bruce looked at him hard. "John, I know where you're going with this, it's as plain as day on your face. You don't want to get involved at a private level with someone like her. Personal indulgences will interfere with your ability to fight."  
  
John had heard the sermon before from Bruce, and hated hearing it every single time. He had trained hard for the past year, committing himself to being the new Batman. But even with Bruce and ALFRED around, it was a hard, solitary existence. Worse than that, it was just plain lonely. He had not been in a relationship since Alex was taken away to Arkham Asylum. He placed the blame on his shoulders for not trying harder to save her, but like DK; she would never allow him to jeopardize himself to the cause.  
  
Goddamned martyrs.  
  
He would never again allow anyone else to sacrifice themselves for him- not even a beautiful Peacekeeper. Who even knew if she could be won over to his side? It was a dangerous gamble. Still, he was only human.  
  
"Your coffee, Master John?"  
  
He turned to see ALFRED holding a cup and saucer and a silver pot. He lifted the cup to his lips, grateful for a temporary distraction. He walked back to his quarters while Bruce's image faded from the view screen, preoccupied with decoding.  
  
***  
  
"While I can appreciate the complications in combating an army of resistance fighters, Commissioner Crais, I find the amount of time and equipment lost in trying to capture a man who dresses like a flying rodent native to this planet rather taxing on my patience."  
  
Crais swallowed, but remained stoic. The holo-image of Scorpius that flickered in front of him was the same size as the real thing, and no less intimidating. Scorpius' presence was enough to scare anyone, even from long distance. Lieutenant Teeg stood off to the side, watching the conversation, equally afraid to interject.  
  
"With respect, sir, this 'Batman' is no mere resistance insurgent. He has abilities and resources that are like nothing we've seen amongst the human fighters. Our intelligence agents have been gathering as much information on him as we can find from thirty of their Earth years ago."  
  
Scorpius raised an eyebrow at the commissioner's remarks. "It's somewhat strange that there would be a gap of thirty cycles before this vigilante reappears. Crais, what do you know about the human life span?"  
  
Crais thought for a moment. "I know a few things. Mostly that they only live about half as long as Sebaceans. They are more prone to disease and."  
  
"Then I believe common sense would dictate that this Batman is most definitely not the Batman of the past. More than likely, he is one of the resistance fighters who has taken up the mantle to rally the humans for an uprising. A rather poor attempt at comedy on their part, I should say."  
  
"Most definitely not the original, sir," Crais said. "So far, patrols have seen examples of Tavlek and Scarran technology integrated into his armor, and he has used it with devastating results."  
  
Scorpius looked shocked. "What?"  
  
"He also uses weapons we have never encountered before. He has something called a batarang."  
  
"Enough." Scorpius raised his hand, part of its holo-image passed through Crais, causing him to flinch. "Whoever he is, he has gained access to secured files that are not available to the general public. This would suggest that he either has contacts within the very center of our command structure, or that he is working among us without our knowledge."  
  
"There was a human named John Crichton who had disappeared almost a cycle ago, sir," said Lieutenant Teeg, finding the courage to speak up. "He had been kidnapped by terrorists and was missing for almost a full cycle."  
  
"Or so he says," Scorpius added. "Let him be your starting point, commissioner. Find out what you can."  
  
The hologram leaned forward slightly. "And Crais," he continued. "Do not make me do any more of your detective work for you." The image of Scorpius faded away.  
  
Crais breathed a sigh of relief. The meeting went better than he had predicted. With the Maelstrom project nearing completion, Scorpius' normally considerable patience had been wavering. He least the real Scorpius had not been present. He could just imagine a hand around his throat, squeezing on his windpipe.  
  
"Sir, might I suggest subterfuge?" Teeg said.  
  
Crais cocked an eyebrow, confused. "What do you mean?"  
  
"As you know, sir, Peacekeeper High Command is arranging their annual banquet for the Sebacean and human personnel, as a way to keep relations stable, and to ease any concerns about the recent terrorist attempts on us. We can plant our people among the humans, especially Crichton, to keep an eye on his movements."  
  
"Very practical," Crais said, "and an excellent idea." He walked behind his desk and pushed a comm button. "Huntress Chatto, are you there?"  
  
A silky voice responded. "I'm here sir. Your orders?"  
  
"Contact Officer Sun. I believe it's time for the change in tactics we discussed earlier."  
  
***  
  
Formal attire was encouraged for the banquets the Peacekeepers held for their employees in the tower. Blue jeans and halter-tops were not haut couture among Sebaceans, it seemed. For a conquering military race, they were rather fussy about formalities. Humans mingled, resplendent in tuxedos and evening gowns while most of the Sebaceans wore their black leather uniforms. The dining hall was decked out with all the regalia the Peacekeepers used for festivities. Long red, white and black banners with the piercing wedge adorned the walls on both sides of the hall, while the dining tables were draped in linens and laid out with the finest porcelain, silver and crystal. The center of the hall was reserved for dancing, while strains of Mozart from the small orchestra filled the room.  
  
John entered the hall with Barbara hooked to his arm. He hated Peacekeeper parties, but obliged them to avoid any suspicion. Looking around, he found the décor ironic. The long red banners with the wedge symbol screamed 'Third Reich' in any language. The musicians at the end of the hall were performing a movement from The Magic Flute. At least they had good taste in music, he thought. He adjusted his bowtie, while Barbara looked up at him with a smile.  
  
"You look handsome," she said.  
  
"I didn't ask," he responded coyly.  
  
"Sit on it, Potsie."  
  
John laughed. Her television references rivaled his any day. "I think you should save that for Lowell in the electronics lab. I hear he has his eye on you."  
  
Barbara rolled her eyes. "There's too much damned office gossip circulating again. He helps me with filing on his break, and we met at the water cooler a few times."  
  
"Oh, I see, just a few?"  
  
"Alright, twenty times in the last week," she said, trying to suppress a smirk. "What's your point?"  
  
"Love is in the air," John said tauntingly.  
  
"Shut up."  
  
A young man with curly blonde hair and a well-tailored tux appeared among the throngs of mingling people. He flashed a big smile at Barbara.  
  
"Here I go," Barbara said.  
  
John grinned. "Good luck."  
  
She gently kissed him on the cheek and disappeared with Lowell into the crowd. John scanned the room looking for other faces as Kanor and Crais approached him.  
  
"Glad you could make it, John," Kanor said with a smile. I understand the chicken they are serving tonight is delicious."  
  
John looked at him with mild surprise. "I didn't know you liked Earth food, doctor."  
  
"It grows on you after awhile." There is so much variety, although, I do prefer eating it when it's a little cooler. I can't imagine why you humans eat your food so hot. Can I interest in you in a drink?"  
  
"Thank you, but no," he said, shaking his head. "I quit Cold Turkey."  
  
Kanor looked baffled- for once. "What does a native bird have to do with a drink?"  
  
"There's much variety indeed, Dr. Crichton," Crais interjected. "In the short time I've been here, I've been very impressed with your world. Earth seems to be a jewel in the crown among planets. I can see why my fellow Peacekeepers have such a vested interest in it."  
  
"I think some humans would call it more then a vested interest, commissioner." John said."  
  
"Perhaps, but rest assured, all will benefit once our common goals are met in the end. And even the Batman, with all the havoc he has wrought, will not stop it."  
  
John remained unfazed. "How is that?"  
  
A gorgeous woman approached the three of them before he received an answer. "Really, commissioner, let's not bore each other to death talking politics this evening. This is a time to have fun." She looked at John hungrily. "And who is this handsome creature?"  
  
"Jenavian, this is Dr. John Crichton," Crais said. "Dr. Crichton, Jenavian Chatto."  
  
Jenavian smiled. "Do you dance, Dr. Crichton?"  
  
He grinned sheepishly. "I've been known to, once in a while."  
  
"Splendid, doctor," said another female's voice. "Shall we?" A dark haired woman walked by, quickly taking John's hand and pulling him away from a surprised Jenavian. The look of shock on her face as she watched them disappear into the crowd, followed by her pouting expression, complete with both hands on her hips, made Crais break out in laughter.  
  
"And that would be Aeryn Sun, Dr. Crichton," he called out to him between laughs.  
  
On the dance floor, the woman turned to face him so he could finally see who snatched him away from the others. It was her. Raven tresses, full lips, and skin like milk. She looked at him with deep blue-gray eyes. And they were no longer scowling, either.  
  
"Aeryn Sun," he whispered.  
  
She smiled seductively. "So nice to meet you, John Crichton."  
  
He tried to avoid glancing down at her gown, since he wanted to be a gentleman. Subtlety was not a word she used for fashion- she was literally dressed to kill. The sheer black gown was slit at the thighs, and partially transparent. As he spun her around during their dance, he could see clearly she wore nothing underneath, save the dark stockings that covered her thighs. There was a sheath wrapped around her right thigh- probably hiding a blade. He could again detect the delicate scent of vanilla. Her hair was a foaming mass of wavy curls, a drastic change from the tight braided ponytail she wore the other night. She was intoxicating, and he had not even had a drop of alcohol in a year, he thought with a smile.  
  
They danced slowly and intimately on the floor with the other partygoers. Her fingers carefully explored around his back, arms and chest, delicately testing the muscle underneath his clothing. For a scientist, he was strongly built, as the firmness of his muscles would attest. It was a surprising disclosure; the man was no weakling.  
  
And he was handsome, too. His jaw line was strong and smooth. In fact, she was sure it was an exact match with the Batmans. The face, though partially covered, remained clearly etched in her mind.  
  
"You dance well," Aeryn said.  
  
"So do you," he replied. "It's a shame there aren't more parties like this. It gives everyone the chance to know each other a little bit better, doesn't it?"  
  
She had a wide, brilliant smile that lit up her face. They danced for a while, oblivious to the other dancers, casually asking the other questions, trying not to reveal too much personal information. Neither revealed the others secrets, nor would admit they were enjoying the process of it, either.  
  
"Tell me, John Crichton," she said. "Have you ever been with a Sebacean woman?"  
  
"Well, that's pretty forward of you." John said, taken aback by the question. "Are all of you this fearless?"  
  
Aeryn smiled. "Pretty much, but some of us are a little more selective than others."  
  
"I tend to romance a woman a bit before we try to get horizontal. You know, dinner and a movie, meet the folks, etc."  
  
"Really?" She laughed, teasingly. "You humans have such brief lives. Why would you not enjoy the pleasures that are offered you at every opportunity?"  
  
He thought about it a moment before answering. "If you live your life right the first time, the length isn't important. Life always ends, that's what gives it value while you live."  
  
"Well said. And what do plan to do with your life?"  
  
"Work for a just cause, of course."  
  
They both froze. Aeryn's eyes widened slightly. All too similar words were exchanged the other night. He did his best to act natural, despite fighting off the urge to slap himself for practically giving himself away.  
  
"Is something wrong?"  
  
"No." she said, trying to be casual. "I've had enough dancing. Let's get a drink, shall we?"  
  
John took her arm. "All right, but its just ginger ale for me."  
  
***  
  
Part 6: Revelations  
  
Time had little relevance to Bruce as his consciousness drifted through cyberspace, his mind plotting channels and routes through the countless streams of electronic information. He processed codes and equations at the speed of thought, breaking down programmed barriers the Peacekeepers had created to block out hackers. Here, he was a neuromancer, a master of the pure data stream. There was no access code he could not break through, regardless of size or time.  
  
Aeryn Sun's file became a new challenge for him. It was surprising that a hunter for Peacekeeper Law Enforcement would have such a high security level. Whatever was in her files would be interesting reading to both him and John.  
  
If Bruce still had a physical body, he would be shaking his head with a mixture of amusement and scorn. John had made it quite clear he was taken with the Peacekeeper female. The worst thing he could do was to get personally involved with someone like her. While he had been Batman many years ago, he had occasionally tried to have a relationship, each one with disastrous results. The burden of being Batman meant a cause that was fought alone, without personal relationships. It was necessary to keep focused on the success of the crusade. After all, John only just started being the new Batman.  
  
Then again, John Crichton was not Bruce Wayne, either.  
  
The final barriers of code fell away as Bruce navigated through the bit stream into the files of Aeryn Sun. It took him but a moment to absorb the data. His heart, were there still one beating in his chest, would have defibrillated at what he saw.  
  
"Oh my God, Dick."  
  
***  
  
She confronted Aeryn as soon as she stepped into the corridor. Jenavian snatched her by the arm and slammed her against the wall.  
  
"Don't you ever frelling do that to me again!" She frowned at her errant partner. "You embarrassed me right in front of the commissioner!"  
  
"I was gathering information from him," Aeryn answered, unruffled. "Besides, I was the one he seemed interested in."  
  
"You hardly gave him the choice, now did you? If I didn't know better, I'd think you were trying to do a run-around on me to get a promotion." A metallic flash shot out of Jenavian's wrist, and the stiletto that she kept concealed under the skin of her forearm was quickly pressing against Aeryn's neck. "At least, I assume that's the case, unless you just suddenly had an urge to start slumming with humans."  
  
Aeryn tensed, not daring to unsheathe the dagger she kept strapped to her thigh. Before Jenavian was a hunter, she had worked with the Peacekeeper Special Directorate as a disruptor. She kept all her deadly skills honed, in addition to retaining the tool of her trade. The stiletto pressed hard, and it began to feel like it was drawing blood.  
  
"I want to find the target," Aeryn said, as calmly as she could, "and bring him in," she added. "I was the one he tackled and knocked out with sleep gas."  
  
"And I'm the one he stunned with a heat grenade. Don't think you've got more of a claim to the target than I do or that I don't see what you're trying to do to my position-"  
  
"That is enough, Huntress Chatto." Crais walked around the corner, not pleased at the scene that was unfolding before him. "You will desist now, or suffer disciplinary action."  
  
Jenavian sighed, and slowly pulled back the stiletto, its length disappearing back into her wrist. "My apologies, Officer Sun," she said flatly.  
  
"Huntress Sun, what have you learned?" Crais asked her, ignoring the scene that preceded his arrival.  
  
"Sir, I'm convinced he could be the Batman," Aeryn said without emotion. "He is in superb physical condition. Also, I saw the lower part of the Batman's face the other night, and Dr. Crichton's face is very similar. However, I think we still need to look further."  
  
Jenavian laughed. "What? You didn't take him back to his place and frell him senseless? You could have found more information."  
  
"I offered. But he said he couldn't at the moment. So, I respected his wishes." Aeryn looked away from Crais and Jenavian. Rejection seemed very embarrassing now that she decided to mention it.  
  
"Poor dear, to be so rejected like that. If it had been me, of course, that wouldn't have happened."  
  
"Because you're a natural born tralk?" Aeryn asked mockingly.  
  
"That's enough, Huntress Sun," Crais warned.  
  
"Besides," Jenavian added. "This Crichton disappeared for almost a cycle. He was probably spending that time training to fight."  
  
"Perhaps," Crais said. "But there are videos of him being held captive by a terrorist group at the time. Maybe there are things on the videos we haven't picked up on." Crais placed the security card into a lock, opening the door to his office. "Both of you come into my office, we need to draw up some plans for our next move."  
  
Aeryn watched Crais walk into his office. Jenavian stared back at her, standing by the doorway, not yet entering.  
  
"After you, Officer Sun," Jenavian said.  
  
***  
  
A young man's image covered one side of the Bat Computer's screen, while personal information scrolled down the other side in Sebacean script. The image switched back and forth with the photo and data of a young female, with long blonde hair and full lips. John walked up to the screen for a better look. The woman's name was Gilina- Aeryn Sun's mother.  
  
"And the man?" John asked, not bothering to look at Bruce's image appearing on a monitor to his right.  
  
"His name was Dick Grayson. He was my ward for several years, after his parents were killed. Shortly after the Peacekeeper invasion, I had lost touch with him. He decided at my insistence to go back into the world and try to live a normal life after Earth formally surrendered, and to try and make some difference in encouraging fellow humans to continue resisting."  
  
"He had been Robin." John indicated to the red and green uniform preserved in one of the glass booths.  
  
"Yes," Bruce said sadly. "And later, he became Nightwing. He's also Aeryn Sun's father. Well, he was."  
  
John lowered his head, already knowing what he was going to say next. "They killed him, didn't they?"  
  
"Yes, and Gilina Renaez, the Peacekeeper tech. She was declared irreversibly contaminated. She had dared to bend the rules and love a non- Sebacean."  
  
"I don't get it Bruce," John said, confused. "How can Aeryn be in the position she's in with the Peacekeepers? This information is telling us she's half human, and the Peacekeepers despise half-breeds."  
  
"From the data I gathered, she was part of a eugenics experiment the Peacekeepers conducted shortly after arriving here. Some of their scientists decided humans were merely an offshoot of the Sebaceans, and wanted to see if mixing the species could breed a tougher, hardier Peacekeeper." The images on the viewscreen shifted to a raven-haired child of no more than five years old. "They wanted to see if children born of human/Sebacean couplings would have offspring with the gland that regulates heat."  
  
"Which would explain why the heat grenade didn't work on her," John said, growing annoyed. "This is unbelievable. She's part human, and she's a hunter for the Peacekeepers. I guess they decided to be a little more open about whom they recruit, or is it something else, Bruce?"  
  
Bruce looked down at John, apprehension marked on his digitally created features.  
  
"Yes, it's something else."  
  
John inhaled deeply. "Oh. She doesn't know, does she?"  
  
Bruce said nothing.  
  
To be continued. 


	3. Farscape/Batman: The Dark Knight and the...

Farscape/Batman: Dark Knight, Rising Son, Pt. 3  
  
By: Spacelord  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Adult situations, profanity and violence).  
  
Summary: With their secrets revealed, Batman and the Huntress Aeryn Sun race to stop the Peacekeepers from deploying their newest weapon. Meanwhile, Scorpius attempts an alliance with an old adversary of Bruce Wayne's.  
  
Spoilers: None, this is AU. I have placed the characters of Farscape into the world of Batman.  
  
Disclaimers: See part 1 for details.  
  
Part 7: Her Mother's Daughter  
  
Scorpius remained expressionless. "So, how close are you?"  
  
Kanor swallowed, unsure of how to respond. He did not want to say the wrong thing to his leader, especially after the incident above the arboretum. Paranoia was a habit that developed among Peacekeeper's scientists working for Scorpius. He kept his hands his back, with his thumbs held out straight and twirling over each other in circles, something he did when he was nervous. Nowadays, that was frequent.  
  
"Very close, sir. We've corrected over ninety percent of the phase stabilization adjustments. There were minor indications of tissue degradation, but the pilots return without being liquefied."  
  
He paused for a moment, remembering to breathe. "And so, I predict we'll have the final corrections within thirty-six arns."  
  
He must have said the right thing. The holo image of Scorpius began to smile. "You and your people have done well, Dr. Kanor. Leave your notes with Captain Braca. I have other matters to attend to at the moment. Resume with your task." Scorpius' image quickly faded away.  
  
His pride swelled as he held up the palm-sized data recorder that contained all the current wormhole data. For once, he felt some absolution in winning favor with Scorpius. Success beckoned, and its means lay in his hand. No longer would Peacekeepers endure long cycles of travel to police the worlds under their power or prolong endless conflicts with the likes of the Scarrans or the Nebari. And he held the key to all of it!  
  
He walked anxiously down the corridor to the captain's office, oblivious to the mass of techs, soldiers and other personnel who flowed past him. His mind was too busy racing with the possibilities of potential rewards for his accomplishments to notice any of them.  
  
A position in Peacekeeper High Command would be a good start. Maybe even a chance to leave Earth, which he never ceased regarding as a sewer of a planet He had been stuck there for far too many cycles. A fresh assignment would be the perfect thing he needed. He might even thank Crichton for making it all possible, even the late DK, since their work had contributed even more to the project than his own. Not that he ever cared what a lowly human thought about helping to develop the means to their own servitude.  
  
The glass doors to Captain Braca's office slid open quietly and he detoured around the reception area, ignoring the secretary and walking straight to the captain's desk. Braca remained oblivious, and sat focused listening to a message from an unseen Peacekeeper over his monitor. Kanor waited impatiently, since he relished the opportunity to brag about his good fortune.  
  
Finished, Braca finally looked up to meet his gaze. "All right, Kanor, what will we do with you this time?"  
  
"There is little more that needs to be done, Captain." He proudly placed the data recorder down on Braca's desk. "I just had a conversation with Scorpius, and he's quite pleased with our progress. You yourself have no reasons to cast doubt."  
  
"Don't I?" Braca's fingers lightly tapped the data recorder.  
  
"None at all, we're proceeding with the final testing as soon as we receive the next shipment of radium isotope the displacement deployment. The wormhole device will be operational within the weeken."  
  
Braca smiled sarcastically. "And you didn't foresee any problem?"  
  
"Such as what?"  
  
"You really don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"  
  
"I don't understand, captain," Kanor said. He could tell when Braca was patronizing him, which was always a sign that something had happened. "What problem do you foresee?"  
  
"The shipment of isotope never reached us because it was intercepted and taken by the Batman." Braca turned his video monitor to Kanor, showing the footage of the shipment's hijacking.  
  
Rewards stopped playing in his mind. Kanor felt himself turn white as a sheet.  
  
***  
  
John watched from the shadows where he crouched down as the transport burned, long tongues of flame licking upward at the night sky, setting off an orange glow.  
  
He spent the past week turning the Peacekeeper installations into smoldering infernos. Aerial patrols swarmed the area, hopelessly attempting to locate his position. He smiled wryly, as it was satisfying to watch. It was unfortunate that other humans were not around to witness it. Peacekeeper news broadcasts worldwide continued to deny any reports of rampant destruction, particularly any performed by him.  
  
"I think that should get their attention, Bruce." He glanced over at the insulated container that held the isotope he had liberated from the transport. It might come in handy in the near future, but for now, it was bait.  
  
"I hope this gamble of yours works, John. You're taking an awfully big risk. If you're wrong about her."  
  
"I'm not, just wait and see. I'm sure that if Dick were here, he'd want you to meet her." He paused. "Why do you keep saying John? I'm in bat-mode right now. Why don't you refer to me as Batman?"  
  
Bruce grunted. John had not meant it as a joke, but it was amusing to hear, even if his sense of humor had died with his body. "You have to earn that, John. You've done well, but I'm still not completely convinced that you have what it takes."  
  
"What, after all this time? What do you expect from me, a-"  
  
He stopped abruptly. The dark forms of two females landed on a rooftop two buildings over from where he hid. They paused, silently conversing and then separated. One disappeared towards the glow of the burning transport, while the other fired a cable from her gauntlet and swung towards him.  
  
"We'll talk later, Bruce. The moment of truth has arrived." John stood up and shifted his position along the wall where he remained hidden. Shadows fluctuated on the wall where the light from the fire still danced, covering his movement.  
  
The female had not seen him. She landed noiselessly on the roof of the building and began to run across its width to the other side.  
  
"Aeryn Sun."  
  
She stopped dead in her tracks, abruptly turning to the sound of the voice. She made no sudden moves as John walked out of the shadows to face her. Her hands stayed at her sides, free of any weapons. The crossbow/pulse rifle remained sheathed on her back.  
  
"Well, good evening Batman," Aeryn said emphatically. "Or, should I say Dr. Crichton?" She watched his face for a reaction. "I'd say that's a correct assumption. Your costume doesn't hide the lower part of your face, nor does it disguise your voice. That's a serious design flaw on your part. And I, for one, never forget a face, especially from the one that got away."  
  
"Well, I did tell you at the dance I don't rush into things with a lady," he said with a smirk. That was not what she had meant, but it was hard to resist an opportunity to be coy. "But, never mind. I have a proposition for you."  
  
"Oh? You're turning yourself in? I think that would be the smart thing for you to do."  
  
John frowned. "I don't think so. They would give me about as much of a chance as they gave your parents."  
  
Aeryn's mouth dropped open. "What the frell is that supposed to mean?"  
  
"It means this." He held up a Peacekeeper standard issue data chip. "There is information on here I want you to see. It may open your eyes to certain things. Come back here in three days after you've watched it, if you want to learn more." He tossed the chip towards her and she instinctively snatched it from the air.  
  
"What is this? Why is it important?" She looked closely at the chip in her open hand. There were no unusual markings or modifications. It was a standard Peacekeeper data chip.  
  
She looked up. "I said why is this."  
  
He was gone. In the space of a microt he had disappeared- without a sound or any movement. She scanned the area with all visual spectrum settings on her goggles- nothing.  
  
"Did you see him?"  
  
Aeryn blinked, momentarily startled. Turning around, Jenavian stood behind her, waiting for her to answer. Instincts failed her again- she had let her guard down a second time, not hearing her partner's approach.  
  
"Are you listening? I said did you see him?"  
  
"No," she said quietly. "All scans come up negative." The encounter had shaken her, but she suppressed the reaction. She held the chip in her closed hand, not acknowledging it to her hunting partner.  
  
"The hunt continues then," Jenavian said.  
  
Aeryn sighed. She did not bother responding. Falling in behind Jenavian, they skimmed across the rooftops, ignoring the searchlight beams from Marauder patrols and the mounted cameras scanning the corners and streets for any sign of the Batman. Her mind shifted back and forth between the chip in her pocket and then back to him.  
  
What was happening to her? She took the chip and let him leave without even trying to stop him. He was a fascinating being, like no one she had ever pursued before. She was becoming infatuated with a human renegade, and one who named himself after a flying rodent, no less.  
  
***  
  
The giant pyramid that rose up in the distance was one of the main attractions to watch from the observation tiers of the Gammak base. Its sheer size dominated the view through the round windows. The thing was ancient. Whatever civilization had constructed it disappeared long before the humans had ceased living in caves. Even the Peacekeepers could appreciate the complexity it took to build such a structure. It was aesthetically primitive in appearance but massively intricate in its engineering. Off-duty personnel frequently stood and stared in awe- it could hold an entire city in its interior.  
  
Only the face that stared upward, carved from the rock several metras away was a more extraordinary monument. Peacekeeper scientists were not sure what it was meant to symbolize. Was it a navigation marker, a replica of some elder god, or maybe even a warning to stay away? What they did know it was as old as the pyramid- and that soldier and pilot alike had a superstitious fear of it. Prowler and transport patrols hated flying in its immediate vicinity. Its blank expression staring up at them made them alter their flight paths more than once.  
  
Scorpius looked on. He regarded the structures with only passive interest. They were only made of rock, after all, just like the rest of Mars.  
  
He turned away from the windows of the observation port and walked through the polished black corridors, moving downward through the lower tiers. The structure was laid out to contain holding cells for prisoners in its lower levels. The base served a dual purpose for research and for the particular type of information gathering the Peacekeepers were known for. Neural interrogation was a common practice inside its chambers.  
  
Approaching the main cellblock, a tall redheaded woman clad in tight black leather stood silently at the entrance, holding a large black handbag, and awaiting orders.  
  
"Accompany me."  
  
She nodded, and moved to his side without question. They passed a pair of guards without acknowledgement and walked down the corridor along a row of metal doors, each framing barred windows with light glowing dimly through each one. Moaning and sobbing, audible throughout the entire block, was met with cold indifference.  
  
At the far end of the corridor, two heavily armed guards flanked either side of a black door. The prisoner locked inside was an aberration that Scorpius warranted special treatment to. During his twelve cycles of incarceration, he had killed a dozen guards. He remained alive at Scorpius' personal whim on the basis of his uniqueness. Most Peacekeeper officers protested, but were too afraid to take action, let alone approach his cell. One female guard had her face torn off just from peering into the door's opening.  
  
"Open it." Scorpius said.  
  
The taller guard nodded and moved to the side to press a sequence of buttons. The heavy door swung open silently. Scorpius walked in with his nurse following closely behind, while the tall guard brought up the back with his rifle ready.  
  
The room was dark, save for the light that illuminated a small table to the left. A tall thin man sat in a chair before the table, slowly shuffling out a deck of cards methodically, indulging in an old Earth game. He did not get up or acknowledge the visitors.  
  
Scorpius walked over to the table. "I wish to speak with you now."  
  
He continued shuffling the cards, not responding.  
  
Squinting at the brightness from the light, Scorpius sat down in the other chair that faced the man directly. His hands, translucent and skeletal under the overhanging lamp, continued their process, dealing out the cards.  
  
"We are within completion of our project. Have you given any thought to my proposal?"  
  
The man paused, holding a card in his right hand. "Did you bring me what I asked for?"  
  
Scorpius exhaled, and then smiled. Reaching into his cloak, he pulled out several small packs of cigarettes, wrapped in plastic and placed them on the table. The man's hand reached out to them, his skin gnarled and deathly pale. He picked up one of the packs and turned it over, examining the label.  
  
"Djarum Black, my favorite." He pulled the wrapper off, opened the end and placed a black cigarette to his lips. "Got a light?"  
  
Pressing the button on a slim metal lighter, Scorpius held out the flickering blue flame for him. He leaned forward and lit the tip of the clove. The overhead bulb momentarily illuminated his features. The nurse shuddered at the sight of him. For a human, he was unnaturally grotesque.  
  
A cloud of aromatic smoke billowed upward, turning the light into a haze. "Mmm. Thanks. That tastes like a steak and potato dinner nowadays. Not that I don't eat well here, but a guard's flesh isn't quite as appetizing- much too chewy." A cracked burst of laughter sounded out from a set of damaged vocal chords. Scorpius did not flinch.  
  
"Within this very week, we will have the means to defeat our enemies, as well as the ability to continue our mastery of Earth. I can create an equitable arrangement for you, if you'll help us?"  
  
"What sort of arrangement?"  
  
"I will let you roam freely on the Earth again. If you like, I will even give you a city of your choice to be your prey. Show your fealty to the Peacekeepers, and you can do with your fellow humans as you wish. Or, we will allow you the chance to see the stars. Imagine the worlds you have never been to, that have never been touched by you. All of this you could have."  
  
The man puffed deep on the cigarette and exhaled more smoke. "Interesting proposal, Scorpy. Other worlds, eh? The stars at my fingertips, whole worlds for me to taste and the universe as my bitch, are you offering me that?"  
  
Scorpius frowned.  
  
"I'd rather you were my bitch. It's hard to squeeze other planets into black leather gimp suits."  
  
His frown turned into a scowl. A white blindness abruptly filled his field of vision. He lifted a gloved hand to touch his throbbing temple.  
  
"Excuse me, please."  
  
Scorpius signals his nurse, and the redhead approached to press a button on the side of his black headpiece. There was a painful grin and a flash of bad teeth as a cylinder spun out of the side of his head followed by a thin curl of smoke. She removed a rod, glowing bright red, and tossed it aside.  
  
Removing a glowing blue rod from the black case hanging off her shoulder, she inserted it into the cylinder and pressed the same button again. The cylinder spun back into Scorpius' head.  
  
"Much better." He sighed in relief.  
  
"You really are hot under the collar, aren't you?" The man said. He had watched the whole scene with complete fascination.  
  
Scorpius grunted. "Perhaps, and I now grow impatient with your games. Now will you tell me your secrets? How do you resist the Aurora chair? Will you give us the formula for the poison you use on your victims?"  
  
"Why do you want it?"  
  
"It will be another weapon we can utilize against our enemies. If we could bond it with the intellant virus we are developing, think of the havoc we would wreak against our enemies" Scorpius leaned forward. "Let us be candid. We are very much alike; you and I. Our desires are the same, if only our goals are different. Can't you see that? You have a brilliant mind. Help us, we need an ally, not an enemy."  
  
"You need an enema," the man said, taking another drag on his clove. "But, I imagine Bats is giving you a hard enough time in that area. If you put me in the mix, you'll give yourself an aneurysm." He looked at Scorpius' head from an angle. "Then again, I'm not sure you got enough room in there for that."  
  
"How do you know about the Batman?"  
  
"Oh! He and I go way back. A little bird told me he returned, before I went Hannibal Lector on him with some fava beans and a nice Chianti." The man chuckled again. "Boy, I could tell you some stories."  
  
"Would you tell me?"  
  
There was a long pause. "Frell you."  
  
Scorpius growled in rage and slammed his fist down on the table, splitting it in half. "Have it your way!" His voice descended into the low growl of his Scarran half. "When we've finished purging your world, your head will be a conversation piece at Peacekeeper High Command! Just remember, I offered you a choice!"  
  
The man crushed his cigarette out in a rusted ashtray on the table. "Oh, dear boy, you still don't get it do you? I had already made my choice. I already made my own plans. I was orchestrating them, and it would have been so beautiful. Don't you see? I was doing it for years. I was the architect for murder, mayhem and complete and udder madness. You know. the good stuff?"  
  
He picked up the cards that lay scattered in front on the floor and began to shuffle them again. "But, you came along and ruined it. You ruined my perfect plan. It would have been the greatest joke of all time it had the perfect punch line- life and death, good and evil, right and wrong. One man's trash is another man's treasure. Why didn't you ever laugh with me? You should have understood- we have a hard-on for death, you and I." His expression began to sag.  
  
Scorpius smiled. "But you amassed such an impressive body count."  
  
"I never kept score."  
  
"You impress us. Why do you think I still want you around?"  
  
The man's eyes narrowed. "I don't take requests, either."  
  
They stared at each other for a long time. "I will give you one last opportunity to concede. I do not wish to see you die, before you could help us."  
  
"Oh, Scorp-meister, I'm going to start crying in a second." The man held up the deck of cards in a fan shape. "Tell you what, how a decision is made can be determined by the turn of a friendly card. You pull out the right one, and you have my help."  
  
Scorpius stared at the deck. He was unfamiliar with the rules of the Earth game, but if selecting a card could procure the man's cooperation- it would be worth it. The man was at his mercy anyway; he could humor him for once.  
  
He reached down and pulled out a card. He turned it over for the man to see it- it was the Ace of Spades, the death card.  
  
But, it was not the right card.  
  
"LOSER!"  
  
The man threw back his head into a fit of maniacal laughter that echoed through the entire prison block. Scorpius hissed with fury and stormed out the door, his nurse following behind at a safe distance.  
  
"Hey Scorpy, I just remembered a joke. A bear walks up to a rabbit and asks the rabbit if he ever had trouble with his poop sticking to his fur. 'No,' says the rabbit. 'Oh, good,' says the bear. So he picks up the rabbit and wipes his ass with him!" The man continued his insane laughter, unabated.  
  
The guards watched Scorpius and his nurse march promptly down the corridor and disappear through the hatch. Silence fell over the block again as the man's laughter subsided. Both men breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for the quiet.  
  
"Hey guys," the man said, sticking his face through the small window with another cigarette between his lips, "you got a light?"  
  
***  
  
Aeryn sat back in her favorite chair and stared at the chip on the table in front of her, where it had remained for several arns.  
  
She decided against viewing its contents at headquarters since they might be monitoring all the vid-screens, something they were apt to do. After getting home and showering, she still hesitated to view it. Even after dinner and resting for an arn, she continued to look at the chip, but did not insert it into her monitor. She was curious what was on it, but she never accepted potential information at face value if it came from a criminal she was pursuing- it was not in the lines of common sense with the Peacekeeper way of thinking. Besides, she felt what the humans called 'a sense of foreboding' about it.  
  
What could be so important on it that the Batman would give it to her? What could be motivating him? If he was in fact John Crichton, and she was sure he was, then maybe it was an attempt at some misplaced affection felt from their night at the banquet. He might have been handsome, but he was still a renegade, a criminal. She never allowed emotions to cloud her sense of duty; she was a Peacekeeper, after all.  
  
She was a Peacekeeper who was in serious denial.  
  
He had mentioned her parents. No one in the cycles since she began her training had ever mentioned them. The only memory she had was of her mother coming to her one night as she lay in her bunk and speaking to her about love, about why she was born. and about a father she never knew. She cherished the memory- they were the one thing training had not drilled out of her, but she gave up believing it happened. Time convinced her it must have been a child's dream- wishful thinking on her part.  
  
Sighing, she picked up the chip and inserted it into her monitor. It was better to get it over with, and see what the fuss was about.  
  
A warning flashed on the screen: Decca seven- the highest level of security for a file. She blinked, momentarily surprised. How did the Batman get hold of this? She leaned forward in her chair, her curiosity growing.  
  
Images of a child flashed on the screen. It was her. A man and woman's image reappeared from time to time. He was dark haired and handsome with a strong jaw and high cheekbones, while she an attractive blonde with full lips and soft, gentle eyes. The images cut to footage of the man being brutally interrogated. He was held in place by a pair of security grunts while a large soldier struck him in the face. It was hard to watch without flinching. Training taught her to be desensitized to violence, but the images were sickening all the same.  
  
Dimly lit footage appeared of children's barracks that matched the one she grew up in as a child. The video panned to a bunk at the far end where a blonde woman in a tech's uniform was leaning over.  
  
"Aeryn, wake up."  
  
Saying nothing, a small child with dark hair sat up and looked at the woman. The one side of the woman's face was scarred from a pulse weapon's blast. She had been injured fleeing from the interrogators.  
  
"Aeryn, we've never met. My name is Gilina Renaez. I'm your mother."  
  
Aeryn watched the monitor- her expression froze.  
  
"I'm not supposed to be here, but I'm taking this opportunity to see you before I lose any chance."  
  
On the screen, the child Aeryn gazed on, unresponsive. A mind so young and conditioned by the Peacekeepers was not trained to react to familial declaration.  
  
"Your father and I loved each other very much. And we had you out of love, even though the Peacekeepers ordered me to have you to suit their purposes." She paused for a moment. "Aeryn. You are not an accident, or a body destined to fill the ranks. You're our special little girl." The image skipped slightly, some of the footage had a grainy texture to it. But she could she the woman running her hand through the little girl's hair.  
  
"Your father's name is Dick Grayson, he's not like you or I, but he loves you very much, just as I do. There's something very different about you. One day you will come to know what it is."  
  
Tears began to stream down the woman's face. "I also wanted to say how sorry I am neither of us will be around to take care of you. We tried to hide you from them, but.." She trailed off. "They took him from me, Aeryn. They'll take me soon, as well. But I wanted you to know you're always in our heart, and we'll always love you." She gently stroked the young girl's cheek.  
  
"Go back to sleep now." She laid the small child back onto the bunk and tucked her in. She turned and quietly walked out of range of the video monitors.  
  
Aeryn began trembling as the last pieces of information flashed on the screen. Images of Gilina Renaez and Dick Grayson appeared with standard log entry data:  
  
SUBJECT: PROJECT BIOGENESIS 29579844 -X SEBACEAN INTERBREEDING WITH LIKE SPECIES - Y HUMAN - CAUSE ABILITY TO BREED SOLDIER W/ IMMUNITY TO HEAT DELERIUM/LIVING DEATH  
  
FEMALE: GILINA RENAEZ - 24 CYCLES -TECH - MAINTAINENCE PROVOST -SCHEDULED FOR BREEDING  
  
MALE: RICHARD "DICK" GRAYSON - 26 CYCLES (APPROX.) - TEST SUBJECT *** WARNING*** (SUSPECTED EARTH RESISTANCE/VIGILANTE: KNOWN ALIASES INCLUDE NIGHTWING, ROBIN, ETC.) UNDER OBSERVATION/ TECH RENAEZ'S RELATIONSHIP WITH MALE SUBJECT PERMISSABLE DURING EXPERIMENTATION PERIOD  
  
SUBJECT RESULT OF BIOGENESIS 29579844 X - Y INTERBREEDING**************** BORN: FEMALE - SUCCESSFUL SEBACEAN/HUMAN HYBRID NAME: AERYN - HAIR: BLACK - EYES: BLUE/GRAY - LENGTH: 20.45 HENTAS - WEIGHT: 7.1 UNITS - NO NEGATIVE EFFECTS IN TEMPERATURE CHANGE, BODY SELF- REGULATES INTERNAL TEMPERATURE FROM BIRTH  
  
RESULTS SUCCESSFUL BIRTH - CHILD SCHEDULED FOR STANDARD PEACEKEEPER INDOCTRINATION UPON FIVES CYCLES BEING REACHED - GUARDIANSHIP REGISTERED TO XHALAX SUN: **48577i88** SENIOR OFFICER~  
  
488600/998 TECH RENAEZ, GILINA- EXCEEDED PARAMETERS FOR IRREVERSIBLE CONTAMINATION  
  
GRAYSON, RICHARD- SUSPECTED OF VIGILANTE ACTS AGAINST PEACEKEEPERS - APPREHENDED ATTEMPTING TO TAKE SUBJECT AERYN OUTSIDE PEACEKEEPER JURISDICTIONS  
  
POST NOTE: BOTH FEMALE AND MALE SUBJECTS GUILTY OF NUMEROUS VIOLATIONS, AND ARE SCHEDULED FOR TERMINATION, PER ORDERS OF Ld SCORPIUS~  
  
NOTHING FOLLOWS  
  
Aeryn tried to stand up, but her legs buckled and she collapsed to the floor. Holding her hand to her mouth, she struggled not to cry, as she was taught it was a weakness. The image of her parents remained frozen on the monitor screen.  
  
Her training failed; the tears came hard.  
  
***  
  
Part 8: Serendipity  
  
The doors slid open and Lieutenant Teeg walked into Crais' office with the files he had been waiting for. Crais himself stood in front of the window looking over the Gotham skyline, brooding.  
  
"Excuse me, sir? The techs have completed their work." Teeg said excitedly. "And you were right about the video from gate forty four. It had been tampered with. The techs found that the image was considerably altered."  
  
Crais stepped over to the monitor where she was preparing the video chip. "Show me."  
  
The video showed the footage of a man resembling John Crichton assaulting two guards at the gate checkpoint and driving away. Teeg froze the image momentarily. "This footage is unaltered sir, and I think it's obvious that was the real John Crichton, and not a look-alike."  
  
She scrolled the footage forward to clips of John Crichton tied to a chair with several of the supposed terrorists surrounding him, including the look- alike. Except for Crichton, all the other figures were surrounded in a bright blue outline. "As you can see here sir, the image of the terrorists was digitally superimposed over a real image. This particular footage was actually taken from a human terrorist kidnapping of a Peacekeeper officer over ten cycles ago. John Crichton's face was electronically placed onto the face of the one terrorist, but we didn't detect it at first because there were so many coding levels to decrypt to peel the image back."  
  
"Nicely done," Crais said, thoughtfully placing a finger to his lips. "Whoever altered this was brilliant. It's some of the best work I've ever looked at. We were fooled for quite a while, weren't we?"  
  
"Yes, sir, we were. But, have a look at this."  
  
The image continued on to show the real scene as it happened. Through the grainy images of the video camera on the site, an enraged John Crichton lashes out at the two Peacekeeper guards, knocking them out. The human scientist then opens the gate and speeds away in his car. Scrolling forward, Crais looked over a series of photos of a damaged car identical to the one John Crichton had been driving.  
  
"Those were taken by a Marauder patrol that pursued an unauthorized pedestrian on the road and through the woods about forty metras north of Gotham's perimeter on the same day. Marauder patrol found it. Intact at first, but later someone burned it. It's John Crichtons, for certain. The patrol followed a man through the woods but lost him in the remnants of a castle or manor somewhere."  
  
"Can we pinpoint the location of this manor?" Crais asked.  
  
"We have a patrol searching now, sir."  
  
"Perfect. This may be the key we're looking for. Has anyone been able to locate Crichton?"  
  
Teeg smiled slightly. "He's not been at his apartment for several days now, and he hasn't reported for work, either."  
  
"What exactly was the nature of his work for the Peacekeepers?"  
  
"He was one of the top scientists working on the wormhole weapon being developed. Before he disappeared, he made some of the most significant breakthroughs. But each part of the whole project was assigned in parts to different teams. If he somehow managed to get hold of all the information."  
  
"That seals it then. He knows we're onto him. I want you to Contact Officers Chatto and Sun. I want him bought in immediately."  
  
The lieutenant's smile faded. "We already did, sir. Officer Chatto responded, but Officer Sun has not responded to our hails, nor is she at home."  
  
***  
  
As John swung around the edge of the building, he could already see her sitting on the top of a factory across the street. As he landed on the roof, dawn was beginning to break over the horizon, with streaks of pink touching the cool gray of the sky. She was alone.  
  
"How did you know?"  
  
She had not looked up to acknowledge him, but he could tell she wanted a straight answer. He hesitated, trying to find the words. Even under the dim morning light she looked beautiful, as well as vulnerable.  
  
He was forgetting himself again. Bruce would be chewing him out in disgust had he kept the comm link open.  
  
"How did you know?" She repeated.  
  
"I know someone who knew your father. They were very close."  
  
Aeryn nodded slightly. "You know, for years I've dreamed about my mother coming to me while I slept. I was never really sure if it happened- until now." She held up the chip. "I'd wake up wishing it had, but then wishing it didn't, because it hurt that she wasn't there. So I tried to forget." There was a long pause. "My relationships since have always been painful." She laughed slightly. "I imagine you don't know what I'm talking about."  
  
He paused, looking at her sadly. "You have no idea how much."  
  
She stood up, brushing the dust off her uniform. "Where are we going with all this?"  
  
"I want you to come with me. I want to introduce you to the man who knew your father. I want you to help us to win the war we're fighting. Earth is part of your heritage. We felt it was important that you know these things."  
  
"John."  
  
He tapped his headpiece. An emergency transmission from Bruce was coming through.  
  
"John. Get out of there, it's a trap!"  
  
The loud whine of an engine alerted him to it. Turning around, a Marauder rose up from below the building's ledge and trained its lights and pulse weapons on him. Four commandoes jumped from the back onto the roof and trained their weapons on him as well. Aeryn stared on in wide-eyed distress.  
  
"ATTENTION, BATMAN! YOU ARE UNDER ARREST. DO NOT RESIST OR WE WILL USE DEADLY FORCE. HUNTRESS SUN, YOU WILL ASSIST AND RESTRAIN HIM IMMEDIATELY!"  
  
He turned angrily towards Aeryn. "Why?"  
  
She said nothing. Her face still looked surprised.  
  
"Why are you a part of this? Open your eyes, can't you see how they are?"  
  
She finally found her voice. "Crichton, I - I had nothing to do with this, I promise you. They must have followed me."  
  
John extended his arm and fired concussion bolts from his Tavlek gauntlet. The first commando flew back from the impact as the remaining three advanced quickly, preparing to fire. He took on his standard defensive posture. If he would be taken here, it would not be without a fight.  
  
"No!"  
  
Aeryn screamed, and ran past him, sending a hard kick into the next commando's jaw. He went down hard.  
  
"Take me with you and I'll help you," she called back to him. She ducked down fast to allow the batarang he threw to sail over her and right into the head of the third commando.  
  
"Commissioner Crais!" The Marauder pilot shouted into his headset. "Huntress Sun has turned traitor. She's working with the Batman and taking down our commandoes!" He watched the battle scene unfold from his cockpit.  
  
"Subdue them by all means necessary. Call in reinforcements if you have to," Crais responded. "I already have my hands full right now heading to the landing site at Arkham. I want no excuses."  
  
The pilot watched as the fourth commando put up a brief defense but went down in an instant from a right hook by the Batman. True to his training, he armed the pulse weapons and prepared to lock onto the pair of two-legged targets directly in front of him. He grinned sadistically. He often wondered how much damage would occur to a flesh and blood body from a single shot from a Marauder's cannons. He now had the chance to find out.  
  
"Crichton!" Aeryn cried out. "They're about to fire!"  
  
John grabbed her by the hand and proceeded to run to the far end of the roof, moving in a zigzag pattern as they went. There were bright flashes of light, and an explosion as the pulse cannons incinerated mortar and brick. Debris flew wildly and scattered around them, but still they dodged the blasts without harm.  
  
For a brief moment, the Marauder halted its assault. Reaching the buildings edge, they quickly looked down at the ground far below. It was at least twenty stories up. A fall would all but leave a bomb crater.  
  
"Put your arms around my neck and hold on."  
  
Obeying, she wrapped her arms around the thick cowl that covered his head and held firmly as he jumped off the roof, another pulse blast screaming past his head. As they plummeted downward, the wings in his cloak opened up. They glided down the chasm between buildings, as the sting of the cold air rushed against their faces.  
  
Down below, people in the morning crowds began looking up at the disturbance that was going on above them. Was it yet another Peacekeeper pursuit? Onlookers pointed and shouted excitedly about the giant bird- or what looked like a bat- flying overhead:  
  
"What the hell is that?"  
  
"Hey! You don't think."  
"Can't be..."  
"Christ, I don't believe it."  
"Batman..."  
  
"Come to kick the Peacekeepers ass."  
  
Aeryn held tightly as their speed of descent increased, putting distance between them and the Marauder up above. He turned a hard left through canyons of concrete and steel, causing her to swing wildly, but she held on, sailing with him. Her heart beat wildly in her chest. She pressed her nose in against the nape of his neck. The Marauder continued shooting, and he continued evading. He was outgunned but surrender was not an option to him. She knew then he would fight on until he succeeded. That was all she needed to know to realize just how magnificent the man was.  
  
"Come to me."  
  
"What?" She said, turning up to look up at him.  
  
John lowered his eyes to the sight below him. Aeryn followed his gaze, and she saw the shape of a strange-looking ship hovering below, rising up to meet them. It was jet black, with swept forward wings and sharp angles- an abstract representation of a bat in aircraft form.  
  
He called it the Batscape, named after the Farscape, his father's legendary ship. He had been using it to fly between Gotham city and the Bat Cave. They landed gently on its portside wing and climbed into the waiting cockpit. Bruce had designed it to seat two people, and not by chance, either.  
  
As they strapped themselves in, the Marauder appeared from behind the building, having swept over the width of it to follow the escaping pair. Sighting them, it began to dive in its standard attack pattern.  
  
"It's time to even the odds a little," John said, grabbing the throttle.  
  
Re-activating the manual controls, he gunned the engines to gain some altitude. The Batscape's jets screamed as it climbed upward. The Marauder followed right behind, firing its weapons, still missing them with every shot.  
  
"Does this thing have armament?" Aeryn asked, glancing at the Peacekeeper ship behind them.  
  
John handled the controls with confidence. "We're prepared for any contingency."  
  
They flew up into a swirling white mist of clouds for cover. A whirring noise caught Aeryns attention, and she watched as doors on the side of the craft unfold. A pair of core cannons and missile pods came into view. The Batscape was a flying fortress, and it was being put to the test and found wanting.  
  
John increased speed and pulled the nose up hard, going far above the clouds. Suddenly, the craft stopped in mid air, pitched, rolled over and plummeted downward. White tufts streaked by the canopy as the targeting systems locked on to the Marauder. It appeared just above the cloud line and flew directly into a barrage of energy bursts from the Batscape that tore the pods off the Marauder's sides and sent the ship careening downward in a fireball. The pilot ejected in his chair and John and Aeryn watched the soft glow of its braking jets activate from a distance.  
  
"Holy dren, Batman," Aeryn said. He could not help but laugh- it must have been the Zen moment he had hoped for.  
  
"So, now what?"  
  
"We're going to the Bat Cave," John said. "You're going to meet Bruce."  
  
***  
  
Jenavian watched the Batscape disappear into the clouds from the rooftop where she had witnessed the clash between the Batman and her former partner against the Marauder and its crew. She held up the tracking device that now calibrated itself to track Officer Sun's location. During their flight from the building, she hurled a small tracer at Aeryn's back that delicately locked on, avoiding detection.  
  
"Officer Chatto to Crais. I've managed to lock onto Officer Sun's movements via tracer plant. I'm afraid she's turned traitor and is cooperating with the renegade Batman."  
  
"Well done, Officer Chatto," Crais responded. "I will have Prowler patrols scrambled to the Batman's home base."  
  
"Further orders, sir?"  
  
"Yes, report to the receiving launch pad at Arkham Asylum. You have a new assignment you're due for."  
  
Jenavian smiled. "Now who has a greater claim to the Batman, or to you, Officer Sun?"  
  
***  
  
Barbara stared at the scene through her oculars. The activity milling about on the distant launch assembly in front of Arkham Asylum's decaying veneer was slight, at best. The ocean fog lifted, revealing an empty gray landing pad surrounded by blinking guide lights, Peacekeeper techs, a pair of stray seagulls and not much else. The transport had not yet arrived.  
  
She shifted her weight and slid quietly down the slope to Lowell and the others waiting below in the rocks. Over a hundred other fully armed members of the resistance lay in wait, the largest gathering in years. Word had spread quickly about a mission to stop deployment of the Peacekeeper weapon. Every available combatant answered the call, male and female, heroic and cowardly, saboteurs and errand boys.  
  
"Soon?" Lowell asked.  
  
Barbara stooped down beside him. "Has to be. Kanor and his cronies were in one hell of a hurry to get it to their base for a demonstration launch. I've never known him to slack on something, especially this."  
  
He nodded. "Then it's now or never. We either stop it here or it's over." He checked the settings on the pulse rifle that was 'liberated' from a Peacekeeper warehouse a year before. It was in perfect working order, and with one full cartridge of Chakran oil.  
  
"Are you ready? I know you're new to this, but-"  
  
"I'm ready." Her tone had finality to it. Since meeting Lowell, he had gradually eased the subject of the resistance in their conversations until he decided she was a safe candidate to join them, and to aid in the mission. Someone with first hand knowledge of the Maelstrom project might make all the difference. She joined willingly, not because of some heartfelt obligation to DK, but because the day he died she resolved she would never again lose loved ones to the Peacekeepers. If that meant a fight; then so be it. DK would've been proud, she thought.  
  
If only John were there to see her.  
  
Lowell signaled the man at the far end of the column they formed. Nodding, he signaled the group behind him and they streamed past the others toward Arkham's farthest wall. Lowell's group planned to storm the landing platform and engage the Peacekeepers, destroying the weapon due to be transported. Jake, the square-jawed man heading the other group, would take the asylum and free the human prisoners within, gaining reinforcements for the fight against the Peacekeepers. The plan looked easy when it was being orchestrated.  
  
Barbara remained stooped over, moving quietly with Lowell as their column moved single file behind the sea wall towards the landing platform. The muffled crash of the ocean waves against the rocks covered the sound of sand crunching under combat boots, the muffled coughs of sick riflemen and the creak of contraband leather gear stolen from the Peacekeepers. Earth tone camouflage concealed them from aerial observation. If the Peacekeeper security force was a small one, they could overwhelm them with numbers.  
  
"Scared?" Lowell asked.  
  
Barbara swallowed hard, before she could answer him. "Hell yes. Aren't you?"  
  
"I'd be wetting myself if I'd actually drank anything today. Better to focus on the job, not think of it in terms of 'if' but 'when.' We'll feel more confident."  
  
"Says you, a lot of people are going to die, and we might be first."  
  
He nodded. "I know. But remember the alternative. It's a small sacrifice compared to a whole planet enslaved and drained of everything. Don't you think?"  
  
Barbara cocked her head to the distant whine of an engine. Coming below the clouds, the dark hulk of a Peacekeeper transport escorted by two Prowlers slowed its approach to the landing pad in the distance. A large formation of soldiers and techs began to mass on the edge of the platform.  
  
"I think," she said, "we're going to need a lot more help."  
  
***  
  
"He ran across a giant what?" Aeryn said, her eyes widening.  
  
Bruce laughed at her reaction. Clearly she had never fought a villain of the Batman's. "That's right. The Penguin built this giant typewriter as part of some criminal plan, who knows what for- he had eccentric tastes. But Dick chased him across it and nailed him with his batarang from about sixty feet away. Considering it was one of his first capers as Robin, I was highly impressed."  
  
John looked up from his work. "He had a good teacher, Bruce. I should know."  
  
Their laughter echoed through the Bat Cave, vibrating the stalactites above them. For the first time in years, joy filled the cavern. Bruce could not help but join in showing Aeryn the world he and John shared. Even if he was no longer flesh and blood he still felt the pride and the happiness he would have knowing that Dick's daughter had come home at last.  
  
"Coffee, Madam Aeryn?"  
  
ALFRED glided up to Aeryn and John with a platter of cups and saucers and a pot of steaming coffee. She regarded him with curious fascination. Despite their technology, Peacekeepers seldom utilized robots for work.  
  
"Thank you, Alfred. But, I have to tell you I've never drunk coffee before. Peacekeeper policy always frowned on us drinking native beverages."  
  
"It's all right," John said, assuring her, "it's time to live a little."  
  
ALFRED's eye lights blinked. "I assure you, Madam Aeryn, that I only use the finest coffee beans ground fresh with every pot. Master Bruce and I kept a healthy supply in storage for a time when those who could appreciate it would occupy the Bat Cave. I am sure you will relish it as much as Master John."  
  
She smiled at the robot. Holding the cup to her nose, she inhaled the full- bodied aroma. She sipped it carefully, letting the taste roll on her tongue to savor the flavor. There were so many new things to experience, so many things to learn about being human- part human anyway. Coffee was a small way to start; John was even better.  
  
"It's wonderful. Thank you, Alfred."  
  
"I am glad to be of service, Madam Aeryn."  
  
"And thank you, Bruce." Aeryn turned back to the monitor with Bruce's image. "Thank you for telling me about my father."  
  
Bruce smiled. "He was a good man, Aeryn. I'm glad we had this opportunity. Now if you and John will excuse me, there is some info coming in on the wire I want to check. John, why don't you show our guest around?"  
  
John put down his cup and offered his hand to her. They walked around the cave, showing her the vehicles in dock, told stories about the odd curios in the cave and showed off the plush living quarters were he had slept during his training. She listened affectionately, absorbing all the details.  
  
John could feel himself blushing. Despite his age and experience He felt like a schoolboy on a first date. Batman had butterflies in his stomach, all because of a Peacekeeper huntress.  
  
"Was this always your intention?"  
  
He blinked, dazed by her question. "What's that?"  
  
"Was this always your intention? I mean, hoping to win me over, showing me my parents, my half-human side and whatnot. I know you don't do this with every Peacekeeper female you come across. If you did, I'd seriously question your mental state."  
  
He laughed. "No, not everyone, just you, you seemed different. I don't really know the reason, I could just tell. Call it serendipity."  
  
"All right, a fortunate accident, then."  
  
"No," he shook his head. It's more than that. It feels more like fate."  
  
Her smile grew. She could not argue the point. "I can actually believe that, even if the Peacekeepers don't. But you, do you think we've become products of fate?"  
  
He said nothing. He lifted an ungloved hand to touch her cheek, but he hesitated. Bruce's mental training had no preparation for this. He was lost in the moment. There was no Batman, no great battle, no Peacekeepers- just her.  
  
Personal indulgences can interfere with your ability to fight, Bruce had once said.  
  
Still, she was so beautiful- passion mixed with human vulnerability. It was the trait that caused him to fall for Alex and other girls in his youth. But that felt so long ago, and he had been alone for too long.  
  
"Aeryn."  
  
The loud wail of the Bat Cave's perimeter alarms abruptly jolted him back to reality. They ran back to the main console to view the source of the commotion.  
  
"John, Aeryn, I've good news, bad news and really bad news," Bruce said as they stood before him. "We now know the weapon in question is designed to create a wormhole. They just completed the device in its entirety."  
  
John felt a sudden clarity. "That would explain the stories about shortening the distance between Earth and the systems under Peacekeeper jurisdiction."  
  
"With the ability to navigate wormholes, the Peacekeepers could easily send reinforcements and keep Earth under their grip permanently," Aeryn added.  
  
"Correct Aeryn, and a lot of other worlds, too. The bad news is they're putting the weapon aboard a transport ship now and taking it to the command carrier Zelbinion orbiting above us. The loading site is the launch assembly right on the shores of Arkham Asylum."  
  
"Then we have to leave now," John said. "They're using the Zelbinion to make the test jump."  
  
Bruce shook his head. "No they're not, John. They need to go to where a potential wormhole could form. They're taking it to a Gammak base in our system, where specifically, I'm not sure. But you do have to leave now, because the really bad news is that there's a fleet of Prowlers and Marauders on their way here to blast us into dust."  
  
"Then, we have to get you out of here, Bruce. We can't let them capture you, you're too important-"  
  
Bruce cut him off. "I've made my decision, John. I'm activating the self- destruct sequence to the Bat Cave. I'm denying them the opportunity to get anything from us. Take Aeryn and go immediately. She can help you. My work with you is finished. You have to stop that weapon from ever being used."  
  
He knew that one day this might end, but he would never have predicted it would be this soon. Bruce told him he had to earn the right to be called Batman, and the moment to do it was now. He looked at Aeryn, then back at Bruce's image. The turning point already beckoned to him, and he had to leave his home again- and Bruce. He had already lost one father.  
  
"You know what you have to do."  
  
John nodded.  
  
They seated themselves into the Batscape's cockpit as the launch trolley positioned it into the open doors above them. John looked back one last time at his mentor's face.  
  
He was only an electronic image on a screen, but now he looked older. His sadness was plain- this was the last time.  
  
"Goodbye, Bruce."  
  
The Batscape came to life and the ship propelled upward, weapons systems arming to face the coming storm of Peacekeeper fighters.  
  
***  
  
"Eustar leader to squadron, target is now in sight. Lock weapons and prepare to fire."  
  
The fleet of Prowlers and Marauders converged into standard columns of three, which they used when bombing ground targets. The manor ruins were now appearing below them. Satellite tracking had confirmed it as the area the unidentified craft had landed near. Above or below ground, there would be nothing but a large crater in a matter of microts.  
  
"First formation, prepare to dive."  
  
"Eustar leader, this is Eustar three. Unidentified craft approaching, not appearing on radar tracking, I have a visual confirmation!"  
  
"Eustar three, give location, over."  
  
"Eustar leader, it's the ship! It's firing, it's-"  
  
A series of fireballs erupted in front of the Prowler leaders ship. A swept wing, black craft had fired a volley of missiles that took out the first column with a Marauder bringing up the rear taking a direct hit as well. The unknown craft shot past in a blur, ignoring the remaining ships.  
  
"Eustar five, six and seven, pursue enemy craft. All remaining ships converge and fire upon intended target."  
  
The three Prowlers never made the pursuit. Three dark shapes swept into their line of sight and lasers neatly sliced each one in two. The remote- controlled Bat Sentinels swiftly rolled and engaged the remaining fleet.  
  
***  
  
There was so much to do and no time to do it.  
  
Bruce looked around as stalactites, steel beams and other debris fell from the Bat Caves ceiling. The Bat Sentinels could delay the attack staged above them, but they were hopelessly outnumbered. It would all be finished in a matter of minutes.  
  
"ALFRED, prepare evacuation tube, code name Lazarus, zero-zero-two-six- one."  
  
"Master Bruce? Please do not make me leave."  
  
"You have to, ALFRED. It's time for our back up plan. If. when John gets back, he'll need your assistance. Take the pre-arranged equipment that was set aside. Hurry now, there isn't much time."  
  
Saying nothing, the robot turned and glided away. A tube was set in the wall at the south end of the cave. Bruce watched as ALFRED disappeared through the large hatch, which closed behind it. With a hiss and a rush of air, the tube disappeared. He was now alone.  
  
Back up systems flashed to life momentarily as an emergency broadcast transmission streamed upwards to a long deserted communications satellite, ignored as junk by the Peacekeepers, but put to good use by Bruce Wayne. Data unloaded itself until a green light flashed- transmission was complete.  
  
An earth-shattering explosion rattled the equipment loose around him. Before his image faded out for good, Bruce watched the flames, the sparks and the ceiling falling in. Still, he remained hopeful.  
  
"Good luck, John." A tear fell from his eye- digitally created. Darkness followed.  
  
***  
  
"Are they following us?" Aeryn asked, checking the radar.  
  
John gave a quick glance at the screen. "No. The Bat Sentinels are keeping them occupied. I have stealth mode on as well. They can't track us."  
  
She sucked in her breath. "Something's happened. We're almost there, but it looks like the ships already left, and there's fighting on the launch assembly."  
  
Looking out the forward canopy, they could see yellow and orange flashes of explosions as they came under the clouds. As the ship grew closer, figures were clamoring and falling all around the front of the asylum. Yellow bolts of light streamed back and forth. Dead bodies were laying everywhere.  
  
"Resistance fighters," John said. "They must have gotten word of the weapons transport and tried to stop them."  
  
"The Peacekeepers would have used Black Ghosts to guard that weapon, important as it is." Aeryn added.  
  
"Black Ghosts?"  
  
"Special Ops. Those resistance fighters are being cut to pieces by them."  
  
A lone Prowler flew into view in front of them, unaware it was being trailed. The fighter remained behind to deal with the resistance members and it drained its pulse cannons, gunning down as many of the humans on the ground as it could.  
  
"No more," John said.  
  
The Batscape's targeting system activated and locked onto the Prowlers rear. Pressing a button on the throttle, a missile streaked into the craft, blowing it apart and sending it crashing into the sea. The pilot's ejection chair carried him into the shoreline alongside the asylum.  
  
Barbara looked up, just in time to see a Prowler fall into the water, a trail of flame coming out its back end. Behind it, a black craft swooped past and pulled up to engage the Peacekeepers on the ground. A snare net from out its front, tying down an entire Peacekeeper platoon.  
  
"Who the hell is that?"  
  
Her voice strained from shouting over the noise of battle. She and Lowell remained pinned down by enemy fire. Lowell's' shoulder suffered from a gaping wound that she covered with a bandage from her pouch, hoping to stem the bleeding. They had been trapped behind the sand dune for only twenty minutes, but it felt more like a day. In that space of time, they had watched their frontal assault fall to pieces against the Special Ops that were guarding the ship. Far better trained than Peacekeeper regulars, they cut down the resistance fighters like wheat. With the arrival of more Peacekeeper reinforcements, the operation deteriorated into a fight for survival. Half of Lowell's team lay bleeding or dead on the platform, while Jake's team waged a desperate battle deep in Arkham's chambers. Only the subsequent explosions of rocket- propelled grenades reminded her the fight pressed on.  
  
Then the mystery ship appeared, spurring on her hope. Whoever he was, he was mopping up the Peacekeeper's elite.  
  
"What's going on?" Lowell said, as he began to stir.  
  
"We've got help. Whoever he is, he's kicking serious ass."  
  
A raven-haired female with the uniform of a hunter jumped down first and proceeded to take down several guards. She was spectacular enough with her speed- but it was the man who followed that caught her attention. He was large and powerful, cloaked in black and wearing a cape. The symbol of a bat against an oval, yellow field was emblazoned on his chest. Her eyes widened, she had seen pictures of him before.  
  
"Batman?"  
  
Lowell looked up. "What did you say?"  
  
"The rumors were true, Lowell! It's him! It's Batman!"  
  
John jumped onto the deck and joined the bloody fray. With Aeryn at his back, he took down the Peacekeepers to his front; gauntlet bursts from one hand, batarangs and throwing stars from the other. The remaining Peacekeepers, now routed, beat a hasty retreat into the asylum, while the remaining resistance fighters regrouped and chased them inside.  
  
Barbara walked up to John with Lowell limping alongside her; still not believing her eyes. "Thank God you came, Batman. I still can't believe it's really you."  
  
John hesitated, he wanted to hide any surprise he felt from seeing her. He never imagined her to be a fighter, but here she was and part of him was pleased all the same. "Where is the Peacekeeper transport, Miss?"  
  
"Already departed. No doubt heading for the Zelbinion. They're going to test their wormhole weapon up there."  
  
"Where up there?"  
  
"Not sure," she said regretfully. "But I'll bet the Commissioner does. He's holed up in the Asylum. Jake's team has been fighting him from room to room in there." She pointed to the walls of Arkham, now a cauldron on its insides.  
  
"Get your friend some medical assistance and find cover, Barbara. The Huntress and I need to finish this before any more lives are lost."  
  
"Thank you. We have a medic here who- Hey! How did you know my name?"  
  
He offered no answer as he ran towards the entrance. An explosion that rocked the top of the building took his full attention.  
  
***  
  
Crais laid his pulse pistol down on the windowsill and leaned against the thick glass. He could see the fighting in Arkham's levels from the warden's office where he now stood. His forces were losing ground fast, and he was tired.  
  
Earth had ceased being his dream assignment. Unlike other officers, who dreaded the distance and the culture shock, Crais looked forward to being stationed on the blue planet. The green forests and rolling fields reminded him of his boyhood home, a home he was taken from when he was too young by Peacekeeper recruiters. Fortunate was the officer who could get an assignment on a world like Earth, and he relished the opportunity- or he once did.  
  
Looking down, all he saw was death. For the past cycle it dominated his job. There was supposed to be law and order on this world, which was the principle reason the Peacekeepers were created to begin with. He carried on his job, and yet so many humans and Peacekeepers still lay dead- and for what? For the ability to continue harvesting the ore, lumber and fossil fuels of the planet until it was barren? Earth was a paradise compared to some worlds; it deserved much better treatment, as did its people. To say it was mere coincidence that humans resembled Sebaceans was preposterous and insulting, even to an unschooled child. On this planet, the Peacekeepers made war with their brothers and sisters.  
  
Now, he longed to throw down his weapon and walk away. A quiet life on a farm would be preferable, like the one he lived on with his family. But they were gone, dead and buried for many cycles. Only his brother Tauvo, assigned to a Gammak base, remained as his last trace of family. What would he think if he were here?  
  
Commissioner Crais!"  
  
Crais turned to see a soldier in a dirty uniform with blood caked on the side of his face and his eyes wide with fear. "Sir, the humans have secured the platform. They're freeing many of the prisoners in the cells below and they've quickly outnumbered us!"  
  
An explosion rocked the whole floor, knocking them off balance. Two more soldiers, both female, entered the room as he got back up. "Sir, the humans have secured the bottom level. The Batman is helping them, and that traitor huntress!"  
  
Crais groaned his displeasure at the news. "All right, I want a box formation in the corridor. You will lay down suppressing fire to-"  
  
A massive second explosion cut him off abruptly. All he sensed was a blinding flash, a crash of thunder and the floor disappeared right out from underneath him. The other three soldiers vanished in the smoke. He felt himself flying free through the air. The human gunners had targeted the walls around him, but used too much explosive. The entire corner of the building came loose, and he began plummeting to the ground with the decaying steel and masonry falling with him.  
  
So this was death, he thought to himself. It was not a violent abrupt emotion, as he once believed, but a more peaceful transition. He closed his eyes and waited for the end.  
  
It never came. He felt himself jolted from freefall and carried gently towards the ground. His hands and knees slapped against solid rock once again. Looking up, he saw the Batman looking down on him. The huntress Aeryn Sun walked up to his side with him.  
  
"Why?" Crais said, clearing his throat. It was all he could think of to say.  
  
The Batman looked sternly at Crais through his black cowl. "My war is against tyranny, not people. We don't have to be enemies. Remember that."  
  
He looked at the human for a moment, and nodded, understanding. Not enemies.  
  
"Help us," Aeryn said. "Where are they taking the wormhole device?"  
  
Crais began to open his mouth, then paused. It would be treason to do what he was about to. But the man had spared his life. He had his honor, after all. Besides, even he knew an epiphany when it grabbed him from mid air.  
  
"I owe you my life until I can repay my debt to you, that is my word as a Peacekeeper. The wormhole device is being delivered on the Zelbinion to Scorpius himself, on an isolated Gammak base. It's anchored on the surface of the planet Mars, in the region that you call Cydonia. I can tell you no more."  
  
The Batman nodded slightly, then turned and ran towards his ship. Nothing further was said.  
  
Crais watched the pair quickly climb into the hovering black craft and accelerate out over the water and above the clouds. Peace settled over the area again. The humans were evacuating the building with the freed prisoners and their wounded comrades. The wail of sirens in the distance meant Peacekeeper reinforcements were arriving. The remaining guards and soldiers scrambled to secure the area. He stood there, oblivious to all of it. He watched the ocean waves crash against the shore- the foam covered the rocks then receded back into the water. He had forgotten how calming the sea could be for him.  
  
"Much fortune," He said.  
  
***  
  
The altitude readings on the Batscapes console registered above the stratosphere. The sound of its jets began to die down, replaced by the thrust of the hetch drive. Blue skies faded, replaced by the expansive blackness of space. Stars appeared overhead. They could feel the release of gravity as the Batscape climbed into low orbit.  
  
"I know I haven't asked this yet," Aeryn said. "But, can this craft actually fly the distance to Mars?"  
  
John stared straight ahead, not looking at her. "Yes, but not fast enough, we wouldn't make it in time. So we're going to hitch a ride with someone who can."  
  
"Hitch a ride?"  
  
"Check the scanner for any potential transports we can use. There should be several in orbit right now, for any supply trips that are on a regular schedule."  
  
Aeryn adjusted a knob on the scanners tracking screen. The computer's software could access information on all ships in orbit and their crew compliments. "At least the Zelbinion isn't in orbit at the moment. But we're going to need something fast if we want to catch a command carrier."  
  
She paused, and then smiled at her finding. "I have it!"  
  
"What is it?"  
  
There's a leviathan prison ship just ahead of us on the evening side. It has a skeleton crew at the moment. It's the Moya."  
  
To be continued. 


	4. FarscapeBatman Pt 4

Farscape/Batman: Dark Knight, Rising Son, Pt. 4  
  
By: Spacelord  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Adult situations, profanity and violence).  
  
Summary: THE CONCLUSION. Batman and the Huntress liberate a leviathan prison ship and race to a Gammak base on Mars to face Scorpius for a final confrontation. Just when the situation turns darkest, help comes from someone quite unexpected.  
  
Spoilers: None, this is AU.  
  
Disclaimers: See part 1 for details.  
  
Comments: I apologize for the long wait it took to finish this story. Personal issues, procrastination, writer's block, etc. It took the end of season three and the first half of season four to give me the brainstorm I needed, and what a brainstorm. I hope you feel the ending was worth it. Thanks again to Mreen for her beta work. Enjoy.  
  
Part 9: Lazarus  
  
Shadows loomed in eerie accord along the walls of his chamber. Even the room itself bore an air of menace.  
  
He had specific reasons for choosing the lower chambers of the Gammak base for his personal dwellings. Temperatures were lower here, since the reactors directly above the room sent the heat upward to all the levels. Up there, it was cool by human standards, comfortable for Sebaceans, but unsatisfactory to him.  
  
Subterfuge was the other reason. Just as much out of fear his enemies could discover his secret as out of personal vanity, he would not let anyone on the base- or under his rule for that matter- bear witness to the object of his addiction.  
  
A circular tub sat in the center of the chamber, its diameter nearly the length of a Prowler. A spiraling network of valves and pipes snaked up and around its girth, and an ochre-colored liquid bubbled and churned within it, releasing a stink of chemicals that permeated the room.  
  
The red headed nurse observed him from the shadows under the catwalk, preferring to make herself less obvious. Except for Captain Braca and herself, no one else was privy to the ritual. His chamber acted as cathedral and med station all in one. Bathing in the large pool he stood in front of had become a sacrament for him since discovering its properties a generation ago.  
  
"Isn't it splendid, Niem?"  
  
Niem lifted her chin and stepped forward. The question had no genuine relevance; Scorpius never needed an honest answer. Not so much as he wanted affirmation of what he had already said.  
  
"It is, sir- most splendid."  
  
He nodded thoughtfully. "It is. It's so perfect- my healing and my rebirth combined. The finest single creation ever spawned by Earth, and worth every effort to bring it here. So simple in design and yet so intricate is its use. I was fortunate to discover it." He kneeled down and dipped his fingers in the chemicals, inspecting the shine on his gloved hand. "I wonder if Ra's al Ghul ever dreamed that it would serve someone besides himself. Foolish he would be to think there was no one else who would desire the Lazarus Pit."  
  
He unfastened the clasp to the purple cloak he wore over his thermal regulator suit. He left on the black carapace that encased him, as it held his body temperature to a bearable level, fighting back the heat his Scarran half craved. If the suit served as protection, the Lazarus Pit served as salvation.  
  
Niem removed the cloak from his shoulders. He descended the metal stairs and immersed himself in the chemicals, allowing their lucidity to seep through the crevices of his suit, into the pores of his skin, feeling its effects throughout his body. Chemical radiance reached its tendrils into him, regenerating dying cells, repairing genetic structure and prolonging an already ancient life.  
  
He threw back his head and exhaled. "Again, I feel reborn. I feel eternity touch me every time I immerse myself. I would have liked Ra's al Ghul to see how his creation has sustained me." He paused for a moment, and then smiled. "But then, I seem to remember I snapped his neck after he divulged its secrets. Did you know his name meant 'The Demon's Head?' Such a disappointing opponent he was. I wonder why the Batman had not dealt with him permanently long before I did."  
  
Her face remained expressionless. She had heard the translation of Ra's al Ghuls name before. Ironic, it seemed, he did not use the name for himself.  
  
"He did not have your vision, Scorpius. Perhaps through this, you'll live forever."  
  
He cocked his head slightly, giving the remark serious consideration. "Perhaps. In the meantime, however, I will be content once our other guest above us reveals the information that I desire, since the human will not cooperate. Once the wormhole device is successfully deployed, then I might ponder my immortality."  
  
His eyes looked up at the skeletal framework of the chambers ceiling. He began to laugh- a rare occurrence for him. He slowly immersed his head under the liquid and completely disappeared from view. There was only the sound of the bubbling of the chemicals as they broke the surface, disturbing the silence.  
  
***  
  
Space surrounded them on all sides. This was where his father dwelled when he was a boy. He told his father once when he was still alive that he hoped to follow in his footsteps one day. His father only smiled weakly, never answering the remark. The Peacekeepers permanently grounded him after the conquest- then killed him later as an example to anyone who might try and make a stand. The only humans who set foot into space afterwards were slaves or prisoners.  
  
But no more- if his father could only see him now.  
  
"There it is."  
  
John checked the Batscape's monitor to verify the location. It was right on target, exactly were Aeryn had indicated it. Just beyond Earth's evening side and above the event horizon was the leviathan ship. It floated solitary, faintly reflecting gold tones under the dim starlight. Only the front of the ship, covered by a clumsy black control collar, gave any evidence of the Peacekeeper's control.  
  
There was no Prowler escort and no other ships nearby to interfere with their intentions. This was the perfect opportunity for a hijacking. It would be score one for humanity, even if they were not aware of it. It was already becoming a day of firsts.  
  
"Now we just have to figure out how to get on board," he said, studying the scene before him. "I imagine this would be second nature to you, Aeryn."  
  
She looked at him but did not answer. He meant what he said. Bluffing their way onto a starship had never been part of the Batman's training, either past or present. Space itself would have been a new environment for Bruce as well as for him. He had no clue how to handle it.  
  
"Any ideas?"  
  
Her eyes brightened up. "Leave that to me, and turn off your stealth mode."  
  
As soon as he shut it off, a transmission came through. "Unidentified craft, you are approaching Peacekeeper prison transport Moya. Identify yourself."  
  
She adjusted her headset. "This is Officer Aeryn Sun, retrieval hunter, Peacekeeper Law Enforcement Liaison, Gotham City sector. I'm delivering a human prisoner for transport."  
  
There was a pause. "Officer Sun, your delivery was not expected. Furthermore, visuals indicate you are flying an unidentified ship not found in our data stores."  
  
"I'm flying the prototype of a new Peacekeeper hunter ship. My prisoner has the highest-level priority. Will you let me on board?"  
  
An even longer pause kept the silence in the Batscape's cockpit. Standard Peacekeeper personnel were unused to abrupt changes in their schedules.  
  
"We will need you to transmit your identification code."  
  
"Acknowledged. Stand by."  
  
She removed the ident-chip from around her neck and inserted it into the compatible port on the Batscape's instrument panel. "Let's hope they haven't cancelled my code yet. I've only been a traitor for a few arns."  
  
They watched the lights on the screen blink in a random pattern as the code transmission went through. The prison ship grew steadily larger through the Batscape's canopy with each second. John craned his neck up towards it, taking in its dimensions. It was hard to believe it was actually a living creature, and a slave, at that.  
  
A green light flashed in approval. "You are cleared for arrival, Officer Sun. Please allow the docking web to guide you in."  
  
John pulled the ident-chip out and handed it back to her, smiling. "I always knew there was a reason this was a two-seater. So, are you prepared for what we have to do now?"  
  
"Let's do it." She looked at him assuredly.  
  
He nodded back. It was now just the two of them against all of the Peacekeeper forces. Somehow, he did not mind the odds.  
  
Batman and Aeryn: that had a certain ring to it.  
  
John.  
  
For just a moment, he thought he heard someone calling to him.  
  
***  
  
Taking down a handful of guards that met them in the Moya's docking bay was simple enough. They were substandard grunts at best, easily surprised. Getting to the lieutenant, who had barricaded himself in the control room, was a slightly different matter. As Aeryn rewired the door key, he ordered the ships pilot to send out a distress call, to alert reinforcements.  
  
Moya's pilot had a different idea. It knew an opportunity when it saw one. A slave always turned on his master, Bruce had once said. Aeryn guaranteed the pilot would defy the Peacekeepers in a microt. Just before the lieutenant tried to send a pain pulse to the control collar, a batarang struck the back of his skull sending him into unconsciousness. The prisoners, freed by a simple push of a fail-safe switch on their tier, quickly dealt with any remaining personnel that had remained hidden below in the lower levels.  
  
"That was easy enough," John said, reaching down to hoist the stunned officer over his shoulder. "But I think we need to introduce ourselves to the pilot and the prisoners before they get the wrong ideas."  
  
Aeryn nodded, checking the ships roster. "At least there's not too many. According to this, there are only three prisoners currently onboard- a Luxan, a Delvian and a Hynerian."  
  
"That is enough to make it count, I would say."  
  
They turned quickly at the sound of the voice. A giant stood in the doorway, tattooed and bearded, with what looked like tentacles coming through the locks of his braided hair and a bony plate on his nose. He was dressed head to toe in blood red.  
  
John's eyes widened slightly. It had to be the Luxan. He had heard of them, but never seen one before. He was imposing; even more so because of the large sword he held in his hand. He wondered how the Peacekeepers could have even held him in the first place. A set of metal rings protruding from his collarbones told him.  
  
Behind him, two others flanked him on each side. One was a female, Beautiful, bald and blue from head to toe- the Delvian. The other could only be described as a two-foot tall frog floating in some type of gold hovering chair- the Hynerian. All of them stood there recently liberated from their cells and pointing weapons at Aeryn and himself.  
  
John put down the unconscious Peacekeeper and held up his hands. "We have no quarrel with you. We're here to free this ship- we need its help."  
  
"You mean her help," the Delvian corrected.  
  
"How nice," the Hynerian said sarcastically. "But we need her help too. I need to reclaim my throne as quickly as possible, so we are getting the frell out of here now." He turned to face a clamshell shaped instrument. "Pilot! Do you hear us? Starburst us away from here, now!"  
  
An image appeared on the clamshell. This time, John's jaw dropped. A large four-armed crustacean-like creature appeared on the monitor- Moya's pilot. He blinked again to make sure he was not hallucinating. A giant crab with eyes like Albert Einstein's was flying the Moya.  
  
"Impossible!" It said. "We still cannot starburst with the control collar on, Dominar Rygel. A Peacekeeper vessel would easily catch us."  
  
The Luxan growled. "Then I will remedy that right now! I'll tear out the wiring in the command console. Something has to give!"  
  
"Wait!" Aeryn brushed past him, facing the pilot's screen. "Pilot, we need both you and Moya's help. But we need you to keep the control collar on for a bit longer."  
  
Pilot was taken aback. "Why?"  
  
"Is that joke, Peacekeeper?" The Luxan pointed his blade at her. "We're free now, and I vow I will never be taken prisoner again. Now, I don't know what the frell he's supposed to be in that outfit, but you, I recognize easily- Peacekeeper huntress. Your kind is responsible for my capture in the first place!"  
  
"She's not a Peacekeeper anymore," John said. "I said we had no quarrel with you. Now, lower your sword. We'll need your help, too."  
  
The Luxan turned to face him again. His stare could burn a hole through the bulkhead. "And if I don't lower my sword?"  
  
"Then we will have a quarrel."  
  
The Delvian's face softened. "D'Argo, wait, I sense no evil from them. Perhaps we should listen to what they have to say-"  
  
The Luxan roared. Rational conversation was not customary for him, particularly when foaming-at-the-mouth enraged. He charged John with his sword raised, ready to hack off a limb- or two- or all of them. John stepped aside at the last moment and struck the giant from behind, using his forward momentum against him. Even through padded gloves, it felt like striking rock.  
  
But the end results were achieved; D'Argo went careening into a table, and struck the floor with a resounding crash that echoed through the adjoining corridors. John turned and sent his batarang airborne, knocking the pulse pistol out of the Hynerian's chubby fingers. Aeryn completed the disarming, kicking the remaining pistol out of the startled Delvian's hand.  
  
"Enough of this!" Aeryn shouted. "Just listen, will you? We're not your enemies."  
  
Pilot's image reappeared. "We must prepare to leave! Moya senses a Prowler patrol in the area. If they should suddenly hail us."  
  
"DIE!"  
  
D'Argo charged them, hyper-rage fueling his temper beyond its normal limits. It was yet another unfortunate facet of their race John had never experienced until now. While the others stood back, he braced himself for the assault. His size made the Luxan a walking earthquake in his current state.  
  
The sword came down hard and fast. John blocked the stroke with his gauntlets crossed over him. The blow sent a shockwave through his arms. The gauntlets held- Bruce had constructed them to serve as shielding and as weapons- but the Luxan might just push them past their limits. He ducked as D'Argo swung the sword in a lethal arc over his head, and kicked hard at the inside of the Luxan's knee, toppling him again. A second kick liberated the sword from his hand.  
  
John held out his hand to help him up. "I'm through fighting with you. Will you listen to us now?"  
  
D'Argo clasped his hand. "Only upon your death, Peacekeeper."  
  
He was unmistakably not done with the fight as he yanked John forward and smashed him across the jaw with a burly fist that sent him reeling. His world spun around erratically- a sledgehammer would have hurt less. D'Argo stood back up on his feet and moved in to finish him off.  
  
John recovered and stooped down to take the full weight of the Luxan as he swung his fist wildly and stumbled over him. Before D'Argo could stop, he was lifted up over his head and threw him across another table to strike hard against the bulkhead. Hair and tentacles flailed around his head for a moment and they slide down the wall with him to the floor. He pulled his feet under him and prepared to stand, but his face met a black-gloved fist halfway up. D'Argo looked perplexed the split second before he fell. He saw the queerest thing happen as the floor suddenly rushed up to meet him.  
  
John stood triumphantly over him, as the others looked on, alien faces masked in disbelief.  
  
"I am not a Peacekeeper."  
  
"It would appear you now have the advantage," the Delvian said. "We are at your mercy."  
  
John bent down to pick up the Luxans' sword. "We're at your mercy, too. We came here to stop the Peacekeepers from deploying a new weapon. We could use both yours and Moya's help." John handed out the sword to D'Argo, who was shaking his head, still dazed from the punch. "Again, we're not the enemy."  
  
"Now will you believe us?" Aeryn added.  
  
"I will," said the Delvian. "I am Pa'u Zotoh Zhaan of the planet Delvia. This is Rygel the Sixteenth, Dominar of Hyneria."  
  
"Charmed, can we depart now?" Rygel said, ignoring any pleasantries.  
  
"I'm Aeryn Sun, former Peacekeeper huntress."  
  
"What do you want with us?" D'Argo asked.  
  
"The Peacekeepers are about to deploy a device to create wormholes," John said. "They could reach any system, at any distance in just moments. No one, Earth or any other world would be safe. We need your help to stop them. Now, do you understand?" John extended his hand. "On Earth, this is a sign of respect to show the person is not holding any weapons."  
  
D'Argo looked down at the gloved hand, shifted the Qualta Blade to his left, and clasped the hand with his right. "I am Ka D'Argo. Never has an opponent such as you struck me down. Who are you?"  
  
John stood straight and faced him. If there was ever a time for the Zen moment he was looking for, this was it.  
  
"I'm Batman."  
  
***  
  
Part 10: Angry Red Planet  
  
John. to me.  
  
"Pilot, what is the time till arrival?"  
  
Pilot's image reappeared on the clamshell. "Arrival is in just under a half arn, Batman. Moya senses the Gammak base on the far side of the planet. "  
  
"Good. Keep us posted, and watch for the Zelbinion and other ships that may be in orbit."  
  
Pilot's image disappeared, leaving him and the others to discuss the next move, whatever that might be. After making their peace, they quickly placed the unconscious Peacekeepers aboard one of Moya's transport pods and ejected it, to be picked up by any approaching patrol. Only the five of them along with Pilot now occupied Moya.  
  
John watched the forward viewscreen; the image of Mars grew larger and filled the window as it drew closer. Across from him, Aeryn and the Luxan worked on the wiring on the control console before them.  
  
"Almost done?" He asked, watching them disconnect semi-organic wiring.  
  
Aeryn clipped another milky white cable. "That should do it. As of now, the control collar is purely cosmetic. We have to wait before total disconnection; otherwise all the collar pieces will detach and float off."  
  
"Wait for what?" D'Argo asked. "Do you even have a plan to infiltrate this Gammak base? Both of you may have impressive fighting abilities, but this ship is totally unarmed, so what do you intend to do?"  
  
"The Gammak base is where the wormhole project is to be tested," said John. "The entire project's significant data has been transferred to there. So now, the base- and possibly the Zelbinion- is the project. I'm going to have to deal with them both."  
  
Aeryn looked at him, perplexed. "How are you going to do that?"  
  
"Like I said before, I'm prepared for all contingencies. In the Batscape, I have that shipment of Radium isotope I liberated from the supply convoy a week ago. We're going to make a weapon of our own."  
  
"Radium is a highly unstable element," Aeryn said. "Furthermore, there are about 50,000 men, women and children on a command carrier at any given time, not to mention the population of the Gammak base. You're not planning to send them all to their deaths, or did you plan a 'contingency' for that, too?"  
  
John lifted his hand. "We'll make sure they all have time to evacuate, but we have to act quickly. We're going to get down to the base somehow, and sabotage the device. It's got to be in the form of some attachment that's put on a ship like a Prowler or Marauder, that's what part of the project was about."  
  
"It doesn't sound like you're certain," D'Argo said. "How do you know things will be where you're saying they are? You've never even been out here."  
  
He did not want to say he was acting primarily on instinct. Since leaving Earth, it felt like a voice was guiding him, but he could not pinpoint the exact reasons. "Let's just say I'm following my nose," he finally said.  
  
"In that case, I'd better go with you," D'Argo grunted. "Humans and Sebaceans have frelling terrible noses."  
  
"With all due respect, I believe Moya and I may require your assistance, Ka D'Argo." Pilot's image reappeared on the clamshell. "Since you deactivated the control collar, we sense it will be shortly setting off a Paddac beacon that was hastily installed to warn Peacekeepers of any escape attempt. It will be necessary to disconnect it, but it won't be easy as it will put Moya in a great deal of pain."  
  
"Just tell us what to do, Pilot," Zhaan said as she walked into the command chamber with Rygel floating in behind her. "I am a P'au; I can help take Moya's pain away."  
  
"Instruct them, Pilot," John said. "Aeryn and I will handle the base. Just make sure."  
  
"Attention, leviathan transport, this is the command carrier Zelbinion. Your presence is unauthorized. You will identify yourself and your purposes for approaching this Gammak base." The transmission was abrupt and totally unexpected. The Zelbinion, wherever it was broadcasting from, was nowhere in sight.  
  
"We need to answer them immediately," Aeryn said. "Pilot, was Moya scheduled to stop at this Gammak base?  
  
"Yes, Officer Sun," Pilot responded. "But, we are a full solar day early. Surely that would arouse suspicion."  
  
"We'll handle it Pilot," she answered. "John, you need to do it, Moya's captain was a male."  
  
He thought for a moment then pressed the response switch. "Zelbinion, this is the captain of the prison transport Moya. We're expected here for a prisoner transfer."  
  
"You're a solar day early captain. What is the reason?"  
  
"There was a revolt at the prison we were scheduled to do pick-up for. The intended prisoners all died in the fighting. We were given permission to depart early since there was little reason to stick around."  
  
"Stand by, Moya. The transmission paused.  
  
"Oh, I don't believe they'll buy that story for one microt," Rygel said sarcastically. "You are clearly not skilled when it comes to lying."  
  
The response came back. "Attention, Moya, This is the Zelbinion. You are cleared for orbit. Follow these coordinates down with the transport pod to use for prisoner transfer."  
  
"Acknowledged," John exhaled with relief. "That was a little close, wasn't it?"  
  
"Too close," Aeryn said. "Something feels off. They should be more suspicious, what with the wormhole project about to take place. And how did they know where we would be?"  
  
They all looked through the forward view screen. The Zelbinion came into view on the horizon line. Its position was fixed, pointing away from the leviathan ship. Off to its hammond side was the shape of what looked like a whirlpool fluttering and shimmering against the stark contrast of space - Wormhole.  
  
"We have to go now," John said. "There's no time left."  
  
***  
  
The transport pod passed harmlessly by the command carrier as it descended into the Martian atmosphere. The giant ship focused matters completely on the wormhole off its bow, not concerned with a mere prisoner delivery that occurred so frequently as to go unnoticed most of the time.  
  
"Our timing's good," John said. "We'll have to sneak into the base once we've landed and do our best to avoid detection."  
  
Aeryn checked the flight coordinates on the pod's computer. "That may be easier than you think. Did you know we're flying a stealth trajectory? Our approach will be totally unnoticed if the Zelbinion didn't notify the base we're approaching."  
  
"Do they do that often when special testing is taking place?"  
  
She shrugged her shoulders. "It's been known to happen, but why would they do this for a prisoner transfer?"  
  
"It's too late to turn back," he replied. "It would look suspicious. If they don't know we're coming, we'll use it to our advantage. Any indications they spotted us?"  
  
"No targeting systems of any kind are detected, nor are there any hails for us to respond to. So far, we're going in invisible."  
  
"Perfect."  
  
Come, John. protect.  
  
That was the third time that he heard the voice.  
  
The pod leveled out beneath the clouds and headed for the tall black spire of the Gammak base. John frowned at the sight of it. Its architecture was not the least bit surprising; it was almost identical to the Peacekeeper tower in Gotham. But the thing he saw that lay before the base was another matter.  
  
"John, look at that!"  
  
Pointing at the view screen, Aeryn indicated to a giant stone face that looked up from the Martian surface. In addition to that, there was a pyramid in the distance beyond the Gammak base; much like the ones in Egypt, but far bigger.  
  
He heard the theories when he was younger about a civilization that may have existed on Mars long before the human civilizations emerged. There were even Earth scientists who presented evidence from photographs by landing probes that were once sent to chart the surface and analyze the soil. The governments had dismissed the photos as tricks of light and shadow, and berated the scientists as quacks for thinking the red planet ever held life. This was all before the Peacekeepers arrived to change any preconceived notions.  
  
"Who do you suppose built them?" Aeryn asked.  
  
John shook his head. "No idea. Maybe someone's been watching Earth long before the Peacekeepers ever did. I wish I had the time to study them."  
  
"Time enough once we're finished." She shifted the controls, and the transport pod slowed, maneuvering onto a landing zone on the very top of the base. There were no personnel around, or any querying transmissions challenging them, only the blinking of landing lights. They disembarked from the pod and made their way down a metal stairway off to the side of the landing zone and into the base. John shifted the bulky container of radium from hand to hand, allowing each arm to evenly handle the load.  
  
The upper levels were dimly lit, showing mostly skeletal framework, the humming of generators and the occasional emergency hatch. There were no guards at this level, since the weapons systems up top were fully automated.  
  
Down. to me.  
  
"We need to get to the bottom levels," John said.  
  
"How do you know that?" Aeryn asked. "The science and laboratory levels on a Gammak base are in the middle sections."  
  
"There's someone down there who can help us. Don't ask me to explain, but he's been calling to me. I think he's a prisoner."  
  
"Are you sure of this?"  
  
He nodded. "We need a freight lift, one that will take us down without interruption. Is there one close by?"  
  
She began to scan the area. "There should be. I've never been on this Gammak base before, but they all have similar layouts. That's what they taught us, anyway."  
  
They descended several tiers, ducking behind doorways and staying in the shadows. With each level, soldiers and techs began to appear, walking in pairs or alone down the corridors and reappearing around corners. They crept to the end of an empty but short causeway where she lifted open a square door that revealed an empty freight lift.  
  
"Take us down to the prison levels," John said, sliding the isotope container in first.  
  
Climbing in, Aeryn pushed the button and the lift quickly descended. Pushing the full length of his arms against the wall, John felt his stomach come up to meet his throat. The lifts were not designed to carry people, either comfortably or uncomfortably. Still, it was manageable.  
  
After about a minute, the lift slowed and came to a halt. Opening the door, the corridor they entered into was empty, but a distinct moaning sound softly echoed along the walls.  
  
"The prisoners, I take it," John said in an angry whisper.  
  
Aeryn nodded. "They bring many humans here for interrogation- other species too. The distance makes escape impossible and makes them more likely to cooperate. Plus they can work on high level weapons testing here without Earth resistance intervention."  
  
"That's going to end as well," he said.  
  
Turning the corner, they saw the entrance to the main prison block. A pair of guards stood at either side of the doorway.  
  
The guards stood rigid, with heavily powered versions of the pulse rifle at their sides. A sudden clanging sound caused them to break their frozen stance to see what was approaching. Before they could respond, a heat grenade bounced in front of them, flashed brilliantly and knocked them unconscious.  
  
"I guess neither of them are half-human," Aeryn said, smiling.  
  
To me.  
  
Moving silently down the corridor, they jumped and knocked out another pair of guards that stood watch over a massive door with several locks. After retrieving his batarang, John placed a small black box with several buttons over the door's keypad. The scrambler that Bruce developed would decrypt and open any of the Peacekeeper's electronic fail-safes. The box emitted a low beeping noise and the door opened with a soft hiss.  
  
John walked into the cell and stopped dead in his tracks at the sight before him, with Aeryn crashing into him from behind. The prisoner who stood in front of him was unmistakable.  
  
"It can't be you. Dad?"  
  
***  
  
Zhaan appeared in the opening with a knife. "Here you are, Dominar Rygel."  
  
"I'm supposed to use this?" Rygel held out the knife with two pudgy fingers. "This is a Luxan Tokkar knife. Do you know what this is used for?"  
  
"Yes, of course. Luxans use it for circumsi-"  
  
"YECH! Was it even cleaned? Get me something else that's more appropriate!"  
  
Zhaan shook her head. "We cannot use metal knives to cut the wires loose, the beacon's defense systems are programmed to fire at anything metallic. If we are going to remove the Paddac beacon, that bone knife is the only thing we can use, and you are the only one who can fit in there to do the job."  
  
"And I expect it back undamaged," D'Argo said through the comm.  
  
Rygel grunted in disgust. "Easy for him to say, he's remaining in the command chamber while we risk our lives!"  
  
"It is necessary, Dominar," Zhaan said. "I'm the only one who can take Moya's pain, you are the only one who can cut away the Paddac beacon, and D'Argo must remain on guard if the Zelbinion is alerted to our escape. We each do what we can."  
  
"Mother always warned me about days like this," Rygel said, shaking his head.  
  
"Now, prepare yourselves," Zhaan said. "I will now join with Moya to take away any pain from the removal. Dominar Rygel, do not begin cutting the wires until Pilot signals you to do so."  
  
"And be quick, both of you," D'Argo said. "If the Peacekeepers turn their attention to us, we'll be recaptured again quickly. I, for one, will never be taken prisoner again."  
  
Rygel's ears perked up. "How long were you a prisoner?"  
  
"Eight cycles."  
  
The small Hynerian shook his head. "I was a prisoner for over one hundred and thirty. You had it easy."  
  
"Pa'u Zhaan, we are now opposite of the orbit of the command carrier," Pilot said. "Moya and I are now ready for removal of the Paddac beacon."  
  
"We will work as quickly as we can, Pilot."  
  
Zhaan gently placed her hands against the wall surrounding the neural cluster and closed her eyes. She focused on the colors floating through the blackness as her mind reached out and joined Moya's. In the dark field, a streak of red lined with yellow appeared at the edge of her consciousness- the Paddac installation. Her thoughts covered the streaks in white light to hold back the pain.  
  
Rygel watched as Zhaan went deeper into a trance, her body frozen against the bulkhead. Her eyes abruptly opened. The whites of her eyes had disappeared, replaced by orbs of pale blue.  
  
"Dominar Rygel, Zhaan has completed her joining with Moya. You may now begin cutting away the connections to the Paddac beacon."  
  
"Very well, Pilot."  
  
He entered into the small portal and began cutting the first cables. "I hope this is all worth it. We have put our freedom in the hands of a man who dresses like a trill bat."  
  
***  
  
"Dad?"  
  
John and Aeryn faced the tall man standing before them. He was human- at least he looked it. But the face was familiar even after two and a half decades- Jack Crichton. He was much older than the man John had remembered from his childhood. His dark hair was now gray, and there were more lines on his face, but it was him.  
  
"No, you can't be him. I watched him die- along with my mother."  
  
The man smiled slightly. "My real name is not pronounceable to you, but you can call me Jack. We've been waiting for you for a long time, John."  
  
John cocked his head. "How do you know who I am? And who is we?"  
  
"Our influence runs deep throughout the galaxy. The Ancients have been studying Earth for a long time. We foresaw this happening many cycles ago, and we believed that Earth held the key to defeating the Peacekeepers. The rest of my people have moved on to find another home. And I, I stayed behind to wait for the one."  
  
Aeryn shook her head. "I don't understand. the Ancients? What are.?"  
  
"You saw the remains of the civilization we built here to watch over your world," Jack continued. "Long ago, there were many of us. But, over time, the Peacekeepers found our home world and destroyed much of our people. If they master the wormholes as we fear they might, my people will gradually perish as there will be no barriers to prevent them from conquest."  
  
"That's what we're here for," John said. "We're ending this project."  
  
Jack nodded. "I know. Your father was right. You finally get the chance to be your own kind of hero."  
  
John's eyes narrowed, looking hard at the man. "It was you wasn't it? You were the one who provided information to Bruce about my past. You were the one who called to me."  
  
"Yes. I'm sorry. But we had to reach out across the distances and explore your mind to know if you were the one we seeked." Jack looked at the container of radium John carried. "I'm glad you bought that. We'll need it."  
  
"I don't wish to interrupt, but we have to get out of here quickly," Aeryn said. "They'll discover those guards soon and start sending reinforcements. We can't lose our subterfuge just yet."  
  
"Aeryn Sun is correct," Jack said. "I can take you to where the wormhole device is being prepared, but we must work quickly. And we will need a distraction to reach it."  
  
John nodded his head. "I know just the thing."  
  
The three of them moved quickly from the cell and crept quietly along the walls of the prison block, avoiding any armed guards that walked down the corridors. They followed Jack around corners, through doorways and up one level to reach the master chamber to all the cellblocks. A trio of stun blasts from John's gauntlet quickly eliminated any resistance from the bored and ill-prepared guards.  
  
"Jack, which control opens all the doors to the cellblocks?"  
  
Jack indicated a black lever on the far left side of the command console. "That one. But be advised, there are some truly dangerous individuals incarcerated here in these cells."  
  
John hesitated, and then shook his head. "We have to chance it to get the maximum distraction. Besides, we're outnumbered here, so this will even the odds." He looked over at Aeryn. "Would you like to do the honors, Miss Sun?"  
  
"Certainly."  
  
She stepped over to the console and pulled the lever down. The simultaneous clang of hundreds of doors opening echoed through the adjoining chambers, as well as a klaxon alarm indicating the release.  
  
"Jailbreak. Now, let's get going," John said.  
  
***  
  
The man watched as the door to his cell opened amidst the wail of the klaxons. It was surprising, as it was not time to deliver his meal and there were no unexpected visits from Scorpius this soon after their last meeting.  
  
"Ooh. must be my lucky day!"  
  
The two guards appeared in the doorway. "Stay where you are! We don't know what's going on, but you're not going anywhere until we get this under control!"  
  
"Oh, boys, I wouldn't worry about little old me. Actually, there are about a hundred others coming up behind you that I would be seriously concerned with."  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
Before the guard could finish, a dozen prisoners pounced on him and his companion from behind and proceeded to tear them apart. The man stood and watched the scene, doing nothing.  
  
"Well guys, you did tell me to stay where I was!"  
  
Once the prisoners finished, he stepped out of his cell over the remains of the guards, and he could see that all of the doors on the cellblock had abruptly opened. There were prisoners of many races and varieties running about, fighting the overwhelmed guards. The shouts and voices of alien tongues were drowned out over the wail of the klaxons. The man walked down the corridor to the central chamber, oblivious to it all.  
  
"Scorpius, Scorpius, what will we do with you? Maybe it's time to have that little talk with you, after all."  
  
The man pulled out another clove cigarette and lit it off of the smoldering body of a dead guard. "I think this Gammak base of yours has become an inflamed ass and I'm now the suppository."  
  
He inhaled long and hard and let the aromatic smoke drift through his lips. "I've really got to find a better pun. That one is so bad it hurts my feelings."  
  
***  
  
"What is going on?" Scorpius said irritably. The alarms were loud and growing very distracting.  
  
Kanor checked the comm. "Sir, I don't know how, but there is a prison break going on! All of the cells abruptly opened and the guards are being overwhelmed!"  
  
Scorpius snarled with rage, his Scarran half quickly emerging with his rising emotions. "We have no time for this! I want reinforcements sent to the prison levels! Execute all prisoners on sight!"  
  
"Sir, what about the human?" Niem asked.  
  
"I have had enough of him! He no longer suits my amusement. I want him killed as well!" He turned to his officers. "Bring those responsible for this to me!"  
  
"Sir, guards report the fighting is descending into the lower chambers." Kanor said, worried.  
  
Scorpius froze. The Lazarus Pit; it could not be touched. "Dr. Kanor, you stay here and oversee the wormhole devices installation to the Prowler. I am going to the lower chambers to deal with this myself. Understood?"  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
Kanor watched Scorpius, his assistant and his senior officers disappeared through the hangar entrance. Below him, the techs continued the installation work and the Prowler modifications. He was relieved. Scorpius was not angry with him this time, plus he was still alive. He could now literally taste his rewards.  
  
"Dr. Kanor, are you there?" A voice sounded over his comm.  
  
"Not right now, I'm busy."  
  
"But sir, there has been an infiltration of our lab section. The prisoners might get their hands on the intellent virus we're developing!"  
  
He knew the name. It was the other weapon Scorpius had tried to develop in addition to the wormhole device. If it fell into prisoner hands, its use could be equally as deadly. Surely Scorpius would understand his trying to prevent its capture or distraction while he was occupied saving his secret private chambers.  
  
"Lieutenant, watch over this, I'll be back as quickly as possible," Kanor said to his assistant. He walked over to the lift, pushed the button, and descended to the lower tiers to the laboratories. It seemed hard to grasp, but he might actually be recipient to two rewards this day.  
  
***  
  
John, Aeryn and Jack peered down at the hangar from the shadows. It took time to reach the hangar, avoiding the Peacekeeper fray that was busy engaging the prisoners on the many levels of the base, but they made it. Surveying the area, there was now a skeleton crew working on the installation of the wormhole device, and little security to watch over them.  
  
"It looks like our little distraction worked," John said.  
  
"Yes," Aeryn said. "Shall we finish this?"  
  
"By all means."  
  
They swung down to the floor, quickly knocking out the guards and techs. After placing them outside the doors, the hangar was sealed off, barring any access. With the way cleared, Jack walked down to the craft with the radium container in his hand.  
  
"How much time do you need?" John asked.  
  
"Only a few of your minutes," Jack said. "I only need to make a few modifications- ones that they hopefully won't notice. But I need both of you to find quick shelter while I open the container. The dose of radium would be fatal to either of you."  
  
"What are you making?" Aeryn asked.  
  
"A displacement engine. It will make a wormhole. But it will collapse quickly and the strain on the device will cause it to self-destruct."  
  
"If your species can create them, why didn't you already?" John asked. Everything was happening too fast, and he was still waiting for the proverbial hammer to fall.  
  
"It would require too much energy on the part of my people; it would kill us. I'm afraid the time I have spent here being interrogated, they managed to wear down my defenses and retrieve some information- just enough to pose a threat."  
  
"And now we rectify that," John said. "What about afterwards? What will happen to you?"  
  
"Like you John, I am prepared for that. Also, I have no intention of leaving here alive."  
  
"Not leaving? Why?"  
  
Jack waved his hand. "Enough for now, we have little time. Leave the room. I'm going to begin work."  
  
***  
  
Kanor entered the lab section to the hiss of its transparent sliding doors. There was no one in site. Had the lab had been evacuated already?  
  
"Dr. Tynnaq? Officer Runin? What is the problem here?"  
  
Despite the continued wail of the klaxons in the background, there was no sign of damage or prisoner infiltration. Kanor scanned the room, the tables and all equipment had been undisturbed, and rows of tubes, beakers and mixers were all in place with no fires to be seen.  
  
But there was a smell. It was bitter to his senses and completely foreign. He did not recognize it, but it caused a slight pain in his side as he inhaled. Whatever it was, it was still fresh in the air.  
  
"Is there anybody here?"  
  
Kanor walked over to the rows between the lab tables, and gasped in horror at the sight. The scientists and guards were lying there out of sight- all dead. There were no signs of pulse weapon injury and no blood. But their faces.  
  
Every last one of them had a grotesque smile on their faces. Somehow, the muscles in their faces peeled back to impossible angles. Teeth and gums all the way to the backs of their mouths were clearly visible.  
  
He heard a sound behind him. Turning, he saw a human standing in front of him- or what he thought was human. His skin was dead white. He was balding, but still had locks of oddly colored hair on his sides. His eyes bulged out maniacally and his mouth, like the others, was twisted in a wide grin. The man pointed his finger at him.  
  
"Hi!"  
  
A stream of gas shot out from under the man's pointing finger through a nozzle. It had the same odor he had smelled when he entered the lab. He could not catch his breath as he inhaled a mouthful of the gas and he began to choke. Shades of red filled his vision, and he struggled to breathe as it felt like blades were shredding his throat from the inside. He coughed and hacked uncontrollably as his eyes watered and his insides burned. He started to lose muscle control and collapsed on the floor over the legs of one of the dead scientists.  
  
Against the wall there was a cabinet with a mirrored surface. He could see his mouth beginning to pull back into the freakish smile the others had. Before he went completely numb and his vision went black it was the last thing he saw. Death claimed him as his life functions ceased.  
  
Satisfied, the man walked away and went through the doors whistling a tune. Except for the alarms, all was silent in the lab again.  
  
***  
  
"How's it going?" John asked.  
  
Jack continued working on the phase stabilizer. "Almost done, the displacement will cause the density to collapse, and it will draw any matter within close proximity into it."  
  
"Wait a minute," John said. "Are you talking about a black hole?"  
  
"A small one. It won't be permanent, and it will take care of the Zelbinion floating above us."  
  
Aeryn walked up, shaking her head. "You would be dooming everyone on board, maybe even those on Moya. I'm not comfortable with that."  
  
"Neither am I," John said. 'We're not killers. I want to defeat the Peacekeepers as much as you do, but not like this."  
  
"Then you have to find a way to get the base and the command carrier to abandon them," Jack replied. "Do you have a plan for that? I think your friend Bruce Wayne would have."  
  
"Bruce has never been in this situation before," John said angrily. "And the Batman is not an executioner. I'm not about to start."  
  
"John, you have important knowledge that will be given to you."  
  
"What important knowledge?"  
  
"When you began to help to construct this device, you helped to unlock something that has been unknown for thousands of cycles. It's your obligation to us."  
  
"No!" John said forcefully. "I'm the Batman. I will not be anyone's puppet."  
  
Jack closed the door to the device. "Then we have chosen wisely. I'm now finished." He stepped off the Prowler and faced John. "When it opens it will pull matter into it and deposit it on the wormhole's other side, including large ships, without any harm coming to them."  
  
John nodded. "That's the better alternative."  
  
Aeryn put her hand on John's arm. "If we're done, then we need to get out of here, and find some way to get the others to evacuate. Those outside the door will be waking up and getting help."  
  
She spoke too soon. An explosion rocked the hangar and buckled the doors behind them. Peacekeeper pulse rifles stuck through the cracks, taking shots at them.  
  
"We need a back door NOW!" Aeryn shouted as she returned fire with here crossbow/rifle. "John, protect Jack, while we-"  
  
It was too late. A strafing blast hit Jack dead center in the chest and he collapsed. John pulled him out of harms way as Aeryn continued defending the failing door.  
  
John gently stroked the dying man's hair, trying to comfort him. "Hold on, Jack, we'll get out of this somehow."  
  
"No," he rasped. "Here." He reached his finger up to touch John's forehead. "Take this."  
  
A myriad of images filled with symbols and equations rushed into his head. They were formulas he had seen glimpses of before, but were always confusing and incomplete. Now, suddenly it all made sense.  
  
Wormholes- they were so simple. A child could have done them.  
  
"Protect," Jack exhaled.  
  
John sensed the beings life slip away. His body felt lighter. "Don't worry, Jack. I'll keep them all safe."  
  
John reached to close his eyes but stopped. Jack's body slowly morphed into an insect like form, with impossibly thin arms and amber eyes that were now extinguished of life. It was now twice in a lifetime he saw Jack Crichton die.  
  
Aeryn ran up just as the transformation finished. "I can't keep them back," she said. "They'll be in here any microt."  
  
John kicked open the door to a vent. "Jack is dead. I want you to go."  
  
"What? No! It's suicide!"  
  
"Listen to me," he said. "Go into the vents we hid in earlier. One of us needs to remain free. You have to help the others. We have to finish this."  
  
He gently held her face in his hands. "I will see you again. I promise."  
  
She said nothing. He felt her soft trembling lips brush against his for a moment, and then she withdrew with one last look his way. Then she was gone, disappearing into the vents.  
  
He turned his attention to the rushing soldiers bearing down on him across the hangar. He expertly dodged pulse blasts, while his fists flew out to strike jaws and stun weapons knocked over wave after wave but their numbers were too great. A moving black mass pinned him to the floor and the butt of a rifle struck him in the face. John's mind fought against unconsciousness. It must have been like how DK felt in his last moments.  
  
"Lt. Mero to Scorpius, we have apprehended the human called Batman."  
  
"Good work, Lieutenant. Bring him down to interrogation. When I'm finished down here, I wish to question him."  
  
***  
  
A high-pitched wail snapped Zhaan out of her trance. "Pilot? What is that?"  
  
"I'm sorry Pa'u Zhaan, the Paddac beacon has activated!" Pilot replied. "We weren't fast enough in removing it!"  
  
"I was working as fast as I can!" Rygel said, sticking his head through the vent opening. "You try working under these horrid conditions!"  
  
"Calm yourself, Rygel. There is no blame here- we knew it could go off." Zhaan turned to the clamshell to face Pilot's image. "Pilot, can you turn off the noise?"  
  
"We're eliminating the noise now. But I fear the command carrier has detected the signal it transmits. They are already hailing us!"  
  
"I'll handle this part," D'Argo said. "I'll try anyway. Maybe we'll get lucky and they won't ask for a visual."  
  
They wasted no time hailing them. "Attention, leviathan Moya, this is command carrier Zelbinion. We have detected a Paddac signal emanating from your ship. Visuals indicate your control collar is still attached. Explain the cause."  
  
D'Argo hesitated a moment. He had rehearsed several responses in his mind, but none of them seemed proper to convince the Peacekeepers there was no cause for alarm, especially since the alarm already went off. "Uh, this is the captain of Moya. We had a minor malfunction in the neural cluster. No cause for alarm, we're working on repairs."  
  
"We will send a tech ship over to assist. Registers indicate you have minimum crew to affect repair and watch prisoners at the same time."  
  
"Negative! We, uh, have a small reactor leak. We're locking down until we can contain it, but we're all fine here. We're fine. Um, so how are you?"  
  
"Who is this? Transmit your visual and enter your access code into the-"  
  
D'Argo raised his Qualta Blade and sheared the console in half. "It was an awful conversation, anyway. I'd like to see a human do any better."  
  
Pilot reappeared on the clamshell. "I'm sorry to say this, but the Zelbinion is beginning to turn to pursue us."  
  
"By the goddess," Zhaan said sadly. Closing her eyes, she began to recite a prayer.  
  
"In our next lifetime, Luxan, let me do the talking," Rygel said sarcastically. "You are complete yotz at the art of deception."  
  
***  
  
Braca walked onto the Zelbinion's bridge to observe the image of the leviathan. "What is its status, lieutenant?"  
  
The female lieutenant looked up from the command console she was reading and snapped to attention. "Sir, the captain on the Moya has ceased responding to our hails and gave no logical explanation why their Paddac beacon is activated."  
  
Braca nodded, and smiled. "I can think of a good one. We just received a message of a distress call from Earth orbit from the members of the Moya's crew, including its real captain. They were ambushed by the Batman and the huntress Aeryn Sun, probably cooperating with the prisoners on board to come here to stop Scorpius' project."  
  
"We checked the transmission log, sir. A few arns ago, someone on board gave the Moya permission to stay in orbit for a prisoner transfer."  
  
"I know. "No such order should have been given."  
  
The lieutenant remained stiff. "What are your orders, sir?"  
  
"That should be obvious. Find who gave the order, prepare the frag cannons and pursue the leviathan."  
  
***  
  
Aeryn emerged from the vents below the main hangars and held back in the shadows until the squads of armed guards and soldiers passed by. The lower levels had gone dark as a result of the heavy fighting going on. Blast marks peppered the walls and ceilings, destroying much of the light sources. On the floors, the bodies of dead or dying prisoners and Peacekeepers lay on the floor. The newfound part of her wished she could have found a way to save them, but she was all too familiar with conflict against the Peacekeepers- death was unavoidable.  
  
But those that remained could be saved. She simply had to find a way to remove everyone from the base before it was destroyed, but how? John seemed better at figuring out something like that, not her. By now, he was no doubt captured, or even dead.  
  
She would not allow herself to think about the alternative. He needed her to stay alive and free to finish the job.  
  
She checked the corridor for any activity. Most of the fighting was rapidly moving through the base and slowly being contained. She padded lightly from door to door, hiding in any alcoves, using the dim light to her advantage.  
  
There was the base reactor. An overload would destroy the base from the bottom up, but it would take time for buildup, giving all personnel time to escape in the emergency ships and anything else presently docked.  
  
Her attention shifted to a large doorway surrounded by pulsing red lights around its opening. It went to a hangar along the walls of the base. Technically it was more of a mooring than a hangar, used for larger ships. She stood in front of the entrance, debating if it was worth investigating.  
  
She never heard the female coming up from behind and striking her. The kick sent Aeryn reeling and she struck the far wall hard, knocking the breath out of her.  
  
Brushing her hair out of her face, she looked up to see Jenavian standing before her, hate smoldering in her eyes.  
  
"Get up, traitor."  
  
***  
  
"Sir, he's waking up."  
  
There was a thrumming sound vibrating in his ears as he awoke. He winced; sharp pains shot through his arms, legs and body as he attempted to stretch his limbs. Restraints around his wrists and feet held him in a chair. He inhaled deeply only to feel the soreness magnify itself.  
  
Even through the armor he wore they managed to hurt him. His last memory was the mass of Peacekeepers hurtling themselves at him, desperate to bring him down. Fists, clubs and rifle butts came down hard on every inch of his body. He could resign himself to the satisfaction that it took so many of them to finally capture the Batman.  
  
"I wish to speak with you, Dr. Crichton."  
  
John turned towards the voice, ignoring the pain as he shifted in the restraints. Scorpius stood to his immediate left, leaning against a thick metal rod that was mounted over the chair and continued on to connect with a monitor that faced him directly. Over Scorpius' shoulder a red headed woman manned a console where his cape, cowl, utility belt and gauntlets were sitting.  
  
"You could've just made an appointment."  
  
Scorpius grunted, amused. "I rarely wait for those who are at my disposal- or mercy." He walked around the length of the chair and its contraption. "You've caused us quite a bit of trouble, with your costumed charade; going around destroying our valuable equipment, assaulting my soldiers and bringing a false sense of hope to your people. How long did you expect to do this by yourself?"  
  
"Until I beat you and sent you packing with your S & M army."  
  
"Unlikely. It's a shame really- I heard only good things about you. You were one of our most important scientists, you know. I should thank you for helping to bring the wormhole project this far."  
  
John pulled at his restraints. "You never gave me a choice. My family and friends are all dead. You should've finished me off as well."  
  
"In due time. Meanwhile, let me demonstrate something for you." Scorpius raised his hand.  
  
Niem pressed a series of buttons, bringing a padded metal plate hanging over him down to press against John's forehead. A surge of energy from the device caused him to convulse hard at the pain that shot through him, bringing a series of distorted images on the monitor in front of him. His body strained, agony covered him in like waves like hot wax pouring over him.  
  
And then it stopped, just as quickly. "This chair can explore your neural pathways- tell me your deepest secrets that you try to hide," Scorpius said. "For instance, I know you were with the Ancient before he died. Tell me, what information did he give you about wormholes?"  
  
"Nothing," John said, straining to speak. Fighting the chair took a chunk of energy out of him, and they only used it once- only once.  
  
"Come now, Dr. Crichton. You really don't expect me to accept that, do you? While we now have a device to navigate wormholes, it's still not perfect. I know the Ancient held the wormholes secrets, but he was so good at keeping it from me, no matter how much I interrogated him. You, however, I do not think could be so resilient."  
  
"Then get ready for a rude awakening Scorpy," John said, spitting out the words.  
  
Scorpius raised his hand again. "I look forward to it."  
  
Niem pressed the button, and the chair sent another surge into him. John growled through his teeth, refusing to scream out loud as a mental battering ram slammed into the wall he built in his mind.  
  
***  
  
It rarely happened, but she was losing badly.  
  
Aeryn's offensive strikes at Jenavian started strong, delivering several blows that knocked her former partner down, but she recovered quickly, retaliating with an attack that reduced Aeryn to a desperate defense. Jenavian's disruptor training made her more experienced in close quarter combat, and she used it to her advantage.  
  
Aeryn buckled at the blow to her jaw. Unable to reach her crossbow/rifle due to the speed of Jenavian's assault, she continued moving down the corridor to the lighted access door where the mysterious ship was moored.  
  
"Surrender, traitor."  
  
"Frell you."  
  
A desperate kick to Jenavian's right knee knocked her off balance for a microt- just enough time for Aeryn use the opportunity to flee. She ran through the doorway where the ship was and disappeared into the shadows of the dimly lit craft. Jenavian followed quickly, scanning the corridor as she covered it with her rifle.  
  
"You can't hide forever, Aeryn. You and your pathetic Human are vastly outnumbered. If you surrender, I promise you a quick death."  
  
"Very thoughtful of you," Aeryn's voice echoed from the distance. "But I'll pass."  
  
"I won't. Your defection means my demotion, and I've worked too frelling hard to get this far. Only your execution will redeem that."  
  
"You're fighting on the wrong side, Jena. It's not too late. If we stop this wormhole weapon, we'll be saving billions of lives. I believe this, and so does Batman."  
  
Jenavian spat. "You're pathetic! The Human has contaminated your mind. You've become as weak as your mother!"  
  
A tense silence was all that answered her. "That's right, I was able to read your file. I never knew I was working alongside a half-breed. I could've easily overlooked it, but you're too far-gone now. It's a pity I wasn't around to execute your mother as well, I may have saved the Peacekeepers cycles of waste."  
  
Aeryn gritted her teeth and kept moving. She refused to be coerced into revealing herself by taunting. The distance already between them needed to give her enough time to get a second wind.  
  
The corridors of the ship were odd-looking. The organic structuring was very reminiscent of a leviathan, but with the colors and designs of a Peacekeeper warship, and the oblong doors of a normal leviathan were replaced by circular hatches. There were even red and black DRDs gliding back and forth around the corners, stopping to observe her.  
  
A symbol over the next hatch she crossed by indicated the command chamber. Entering it, the interior lights activated, showing the chamber and the vacant control consoles where the captain and crew would stand. A large circular light source on the ceiling pulsed, emitting a series of noises. Aeryn walked to the center, looking up at the dais. She had never seen anything like it.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"And goodbye."  
  
Aeryn turned, and squeezed off several shots at the approaching Jenavian, but she somersaulted, dodging the pulse bursts. Jenavian threw herself forward and struck Aeryn so hard she landed on her back, heavily stunned. Lightning would have been slower.  
  
The sound of Jenavian's wrist stiletto extending reached Aeryn's ears before she could get back up. An arm wrapping around her neck told her it was already too late.  
  
"We're finished," Jenavian said.  
  
There was a loud scream, but not from Aeryn. Jenavian's back arched as a metal tentacle that had extended from an opening in the floor appeared and impaled Jenavian square in the base of her neck with it's pointed end, holding her in place and releasing her grip on Aeryn.  
  
Aeryn tucked and rolled as a pair of pulse guns with blades mounted under them shot out from the ceiling and targeted their sites at the pinned huntress. Jenavian's screams continued as the weapons fired down repeatedly, her body erupting into fire and disappearing behind the smoke.  
  
The pulse fire ceased and the guns retracted into the ceiling, leaving only a faint scattering of ash billowing to the floor where Jenavian once stood. Aeryn got up from where she watched the whole incident and slowly walked under the center light again, watching it pulse to the noises it emitted. A video monitor to her left was translating the sounds into Sebacean as the ship spoke to her.  
  
"What are you?"  
  
***  
  
"No sir, there doesn't appear to be any tampering with the device. Shall we go ahead with the testing?"  
  
"Negative, lieutenant, I want the device thoroughly checked. The Batman and his companions had ample time to perform alterations on the device. I want no further delays to sabotage this project. That will be all." Scorpius turned back to John. "Did you and the Ancient do anything to the phase stabilizer?"  
  
John chuckled slightly, despite the trembling throughout his body. "Don't you hate it when a plan doesn't come together? We didn't do anything, leatherface, there was no time."  
  
"You're lying."  
  
"Not me. Scout's honor."  
  
"We shall see." Scorpius leaned towards the monitor where images from John's consciousness materialized onto the screen. "So, you witnessed your parents being killed in an alley?" The images of two Human's laying dead through a child's eyes filled the screen before him. "Such a pity, that is. Is this the catalyst that encouraged you to take up Batman's mantle and fight this alleged battle against injustice?"  
  
"I had plenty of reasons," John rasped.  
  
"Scorpius grunted. "There was a time when I was much more subtle. I should have been more considerate and ordered their execution when you weren't around. Children should not be privy to such things, don't you think?"  
  
That was more than he could take. John's eyes bulged and he screamed in rage as the Aurora Chair re-activated. It felt like a thousand nails pounding into his head simultaneously.  
  
***  
  
"Ship, can you release from your moorings?"  
  
The lights over Aeryn's head flashed and the video monitor showed the translation while the floor beneath her began to vibrate violently.  
  
Attempting.  
  
Through the front view of the ship, Aeryn watched the moorings strain and tear as the leviathan ship tore away from the dock where it had been secured. It hovered momentarily, drifting away from the mass of the base's wall. The ship's energy readings had to go off the scale- it freed itself from the magnetic dock with barely any effort.  
  
"Very good, ship, you're very powerful."  
  
Am built for war.  
  
"So I see." Aeryn checked the control console. "Your control collar is now deactivated. Your weapons analog says you possess a sonic accelerator cannon. Can you shoot the collar off?  
  
Never attempted.  
  
"Would you like to be free?"  
  
The ship went silent for several microts.  
  
Free. Yes.  
  
The cannon rose up through the hole on top of where the leviathan's head was located. One well-placed shot decimated the collar and its fragments flew across the window where she now stood.  
  
"Well done, ship. What is your name?"  
  
Am without name, you name me.  
  
"Me?"  
  
Would you honor?  
  
She did not answer. A frantic signal from Pilot on Moya interrupted her train of thought.  
  
"Officer Sun, are you there? We need help immediately!"  
  
"Pilot, what's wrong?"  
  
"The Peacekeepers have confirmed our escape, and the Zelbinion is now in pursuit. I don't know how long I can continue avoiding them. We cannot starburst, and they are firing their frag cannons at us!"  
  
"I knew this plan would not work!" D'Argo interrupted. "We should have fled when we had the chance!"  
  
"Hold on, all of you," Aeryn said. "I have something here that can help. I'll be right there."  
  
"Right now, that is not a comfort to us," D'Argo responded sarcastically.  
  
Aeryn gently placed her hands on the command console. "Ship, listen to me. There is a leviathan like you orbiting this planet, and it is being attacked by the Peacekeepers. If we don't do something to help her, they will either enslave her again or destroy her. None of us want that to happen. Will you help?  
  
Leviathan? Mother?  
  
Aeryn hesitated. Could Moya be his mother? She had no way to tell. The time spent on her was far too brief to know if she was ever used for breeding. "I don't know if she's your mother. But I know the Peacekeepers have killed leviathans in the past to breed hybrid warships. Help me to save Moya from that."  
  
Yes, will help.  
  
"Good. But first." she scanned the outer walls of the Gammak base. Looking for the vents where the reactor would be located. "I want you to destroy the base reactor."  
  
The gunship swerved, and floated downward to adjust its position and target the lower section of the base. Its sonic accelerator cannon swiftly locked onto the reactor walls.  
  
"Fire!"  
  
***  
  
Scorpius held onto the edge of the Aurora Chair's frame as a sudden rumbling shook the floor violently around him. Niem stumbled from behind her control console and fell. The overhead lights dimmed and went out completely. John breathed a sigh of relief as the Aurora Chair lost power and went silent.  
  
"What is happening?" Scorpius growled into his comm. "What happened to the power?"  
  
A frantic officer responded. "Sir, the leviathan hybrid has broken free of its mooring and has attacked the reactor section. The core is burning and will rupture soon if we don't extinguish it!"  
  
Scorpius hissed. The Lazarus pit was directly connected to the reactor itself. "Send a containment crew immediately; I want all access in the reactor section secured. I will meet them down there." He turned to face John. "It seems you have a temporary reprieve- Batman."  
  
John glimpsed the reflection of Scorpius and his assistant in the view screen in front of him as they walked away and disappeared through the doors, leaving him alone and unguarded.  
  
An automobile accident would have felt better. His breathing was labored. His eyes had difficulty focusing. Tried as he did to resist, an arn in the Aurora Chair had been enough to drain his strength and turn his mind into a Petri dish. Even if the trauma went away, he was still strapped in the chair - all his equipment lay on the nearby table out of reach.  
  
"I see the chair has yet another victim."  
  
John looked up, and strained to focus on the face in front of him. He looked human- or Sebacean. His one eye was soft, and displayed a gentle sympathy. The other half of his face was covered in a copper-colored mask. John continued staring in surprise, not noticing his restraints being loosened.  
  
"Be calm," the man said. "I know the pain this chair has wrought."  
  
John leaned forward, but the effort needed to move turned painful. "I need to get out of here," he finally gasped. "I have to stop Scorpius."  
  
"Here."  
  
The man opened his mask slightly. A brilliant yellow light streamed out of the crack and bathed John's face in a soft glow.  
  
"Take my thoughts."  
  
John exhaled and felt his body relax. Whatever it was, it healed him on all levels. Words could not describe it, but in the light was the most beautiful thing he ever saw.  
  
"What is this?" He asked.  
  
"It's a place I saw once," was the man's only explanation. "Your strength is returning to you by the microt. But you must hurry. This base will collapse shortly. A leviathan gunship has damaged the reactor and it will explode soon."  
  
John pulled himself to his feet and quickly reclaimed his utility belt, cape and other equipment. "I appreciate this. Who are you, anyway?"  
  
The man tilted his head. "I am called Stark. Will you kill Scorpius?"  
  
"I'm going to make him accountable for his actions. I despise what he's done to Earth and what he stands for."  
  
"Do you fear him, too?"  
  
John hesitated to answer. "For the longest time," he finally said.  
  
Stark nodded. "Fear is good. But travel light. Lose the hate, and your victory is clear."  
  
"Then take me to him."  
  
Bruce's words reached him again as he followed Stark out the door. They were oblivious to the figure that followed their path through the levels.  
  
***  
  
Part 11: Cataclysm  
  
Zhaan looked at Pilot's image on the clamshell. "How soon?"  
  
"Within eighty microts," Pilot said, unable to hide his despair. "I'm sorry, Moya can no longer evade the Zelbinion, and she still cannot starburst with the control collar on."  
  
"This is not a way for a warrior to die," D'Argo said, his anger rising. "We don't even have any defensive capability without starburst. We should never have waited for that Batman and that Peacekeeper."  
  
"Might I add I was in agreement with that?" Rygel said.  
  
"I believed their sincerity, D'Argo," Zhaan said. "And I still do. We all knew about the possibility of wormhole weapons. If we ran, there would be no place to hide from the Peacekeepers."  
  
D'Argo shook his head. "But now it was for nothing. I will NOT be taken a prisoner again."  
  
"You've said that three times already," Rygel said. "We got it the first time."  
  
"And I meant it every time I said it!" D'Argo rushed in front of the viewscreen. "Peacekeeper cowards! I spit in your face! I stab at your ta brushkva! I WILL BEND ALL OF YOU OVER A CONSOLE AND SPLIT YOUR EEMAS WIDE WITH MY-"  
  
"So little faith in us, Luxan? You should have more."  
  
Their heads all turned to the sight on the main viewscreen following Aeryn's voice. What looked like another leviathan was approaching. But this one was sleek and angular, and moving with tremendous speed. Its body was cloaked in Peacekeeper black and red.  
  
"Aeryn, is that you?" Zhaan asked. "What is that?"  
  
"It's me, Zhaan, and I brought a friend. Tell Pilot to maneuver Moya to the far side of the volcano Ascraeus Mons on her treblin side. Nightwing and I are going to give the Zelbinion something else to pick on while she gets some distance."  
  
D'Argo arched his brow. "Nightwing?"  
  
"Yes, after my father, a human freedom fighter."  
  
He snorted. "Still an awful name."  
  
Per Aeryn's instruction, Moya turned hard as the sleek leviathan warship raced past her and charged the giant command carrier. It was only a sixth the size of the Zelbinion - hardly an even match by the standards of any species.  
  
"Nightwing, prime main cannon and acquire target."  
  
The ship's sonic accelerator cannon instantly rose up and aimed at the Peacekeeper vessel. In their short time together, Nightwing already trusted the ex-Peacekeeper huntress without question.  
  
"Fire!"  
  
It released three shots before banking hard to the left. The Zelbinion shook as the bursts erupted across the front of the carrier's fuselage and blended into one tremendous explosion.  
  
Braca nearly lost his balance but caught himself on the edge of the main command console. "What is the damage assessment?"  
  
The lieutenant checked the incoming data streaming in from across the ship. "We have some surface damage on our forward hull. There are fires on several levels, and tracking is damaged. Whatever that ship was, sir, it's firepower is massive."  
  
"That, lieutenant, would be Scorpius' other secret project, a Peacekeeper/leviathan warship. It seems it's easily persuaded to rebel without a control collar."  
  
"Your orders, sir?"  
  
"Pursue, engage and destroy it. After we finish it off, we continue after the Moya."  
  
The Zelbinion's frag cannons turned on their huge rail carriages and fired at the hybrid ship. But it was far faster and more maneuverable than the average leviathan. It easily dodged the rounds and returned fire in kind. The approaching Prowlers and Marauders were barely flies buzzing around the heavily shielded warship, and more than a few were shot apart by Nightwing's cannon.  
  
"You're doing very well, Nightwing." Aeryn said. "Continue evasive maneuvers, they can't seem to move fast enough to lock onto you."  
  
"Aeryn, are you there?"  
  
Her face brightened, relieved to hear his voice again. "John? Where have you been?"  
  
"Long story. What's your status?"  
  
"Desperate. I have control of a prototype gunship and I'm currently holding off the Zelbinion from destroying Moya. But I don't know how long we can fend them off. Are you any closer to destroying the wormhole weapon?"  
  
"I have a plan. I need you to try and lure the Zelbinion over the Cydonia region where the face is located as quickly as possible."  
  
"I'll do my best."  
  
Aeryn ordered Nightwing to sweep across the Zelbinion's orbital path a second time before hailing them. "Attention Zelbinion, this is leviathan gunship Nightwing. You would be advised to stand down and cease harassing the Moya, or suffer the consequences."  
  
There was a long pause before any reply came through. She pictured in her mind Peacekeepers standing on the command deck with their jaws dropping in total shock at someone's audacity to threaten them. Command carrier officers were said to have egos the size of their ships.  
  
"This sounds like the traitor Aeryn Sun," came the reply. "This is Captain Braca. I can assure you no such thing will happen. However, if you surrender, we can promise mercy. Refuse, and you and your ship will certainly be annihilated."  
  
Aeryn shook her head. The answer was so typical it was embarrassing. "I'll take my chances, Captain. If you want us, come and catch us."  
  
Talyn turned away and sped back towards the Cydonia region, to the Gammak base and to a waiting Batman. At no surprise to her, the Zelbinion turned hard to pursue.  
  
***  
  
John lowered the internal lenses in his cowl over his eyes against the dark acrid air swirling in front of him. In contrast, the Banik slave seemed completely indifferent to it.  
  
The corridors were filled with smoke, not so much from the heavy fighting that had taken place between Peacekeeper forces and the prisoners, but from the burning reactor. Stark had said a rogue leviathan/warship hybrid had broken free from its moorings and blasted the base's power source. He figured it for the ship Aeryn mentioned on the comm. Evacuation protocol had begun when Scorpius failed to answer the base commander's hails. The Prowler with the wormhole device still remained in the hangar, which was surprising considering its importance to Scorpius. What could be in the lower levels that he considered more important than that?  
  
"This way," Stark said, indicating a light through a large circular doorway.  
  
They descended even lower into the Gammak base, and John worried about he will reach the hangar above. Prisoners and soldiers alike shared the same thoughts as fighting was all but abandoned in a desperate flee to the evacuation pods and any ships still functional. He was confident Scorpius would save the wormhole craft for himself, but why would he come down here when everything was falling apart around him?  
  
"Niem, order a contingent of techs to salvage the pit's chemicals immediately. Tell them refusal to come will mean execution."  
  
John held out an arm to keep Stark behind him, and peered around a corner. Scorpius stood over a circular pool filled with toxic fluids that struck a chord of familiarity with him. It was something in Bruce's data stores regarding some of the criminals he had fought in the past.  
  
John stepped out from behind the corner. "Scorpius, stop and face me."  
  
There was a slight exhalation of breath, and a wry smile as he turned and faced John. "You're very bold to come down here- John." His smile turned into a frown. "And very stupid. This is my realm here."  
  
"In case you didn't notice, your base is burning up. The pooch is screwed. It's over now."  
  
Scorpius chuckled slightly. "Oh, far from it. Do you think you will make me your prisoner? Where do you think you will take me? I still control Earth, and no pathetic leviathan you fly in can match the Zelbinion." He began to walk towards John. "You are only one man, while this-" he gestured towards the Lazarus Pit- "this makes me eternal."  
  
"The Lazarus Pit- I thought I recognized it," John said, remembering Bruce's notes. "You think you will live forever using this?"  
  
"Everything dies, Scorpius, even you," Stark said, stepping out of the shadows.  
  
Scorpius frowned. "You disappoint me, Stark. There is so much I could have done for you if you only gave me the knowledge you had- but this treason? I'm afraid I cannot overlook that."  
  
"Better to be dead than to live to serve you. I haven't forgotten what you did to my people."  
  
"Enough talk!" John said. He produced an explosive grenade from his utility belt. "Stand away, Scorpius. You want to look young, try Botox."  
  
Scorpius hissed and lunged forward grabbing John by the arm, knocking the grenade from his hand- detonation pin still intact. Niem produced a pulse pistol and fired wildly as Stark rushed around the length of the pool to disarm her.  
  
John used his free hand to strike Scorpius repeatedly in the jaw, but he barely flinched. The half-breeds strength was immense, more than John had imagined for such a thin, haggard body. Even with all his gear on, Scorpius lifted him off the ground by his neck with ease and held him there. Even through the cowl, he could feel his air being cut off.  
  
"As you can see, Batman, I have physical superiority to you as well!"  
  
John pivoted his torso and bought his leg up in a hard kick that knocked Scorpius back releasing his grip. He could breathe again, but a second assault could be fatal. He was out of the fuel that powered the Tavlek gauntlet, as well as his batarangs. He was not about to give in now.  
  
"Niem," Scorpius said. "Prepare a cooling rod after I finish with this fool."  
  
She did not respond. She stood silently glaring wide-eyed at Stark with her pulse pistol pointing directly at him. A grotesque grin was forming on her face and growing even larger.  
  
"Niem, what are you-"  
  
Her face remained frozen in the hideous smile as she collapsed to the floor, already dead.  
  
"Don't worry, Scorpy," a voice said in the shadow from behind the dead nurse, "I got a special rod just for you."  
  
The man stepped out from the shadows and into the light. John's eyes widened. He recognized him instantly. Bruce's data stores were filled with more files on him than anyone else he ever fought. He was much older now by his wrinkled skin, and his green hair had mostly fallen away revealing a bald head, but his pale color, the insane grin and the killer's eyes betrayed him instantly.  
  
"Joker."  
  
The Joker's chin tilted slightly. "Batman! The ghost of Christmas past returns! It's been a while, hasn't it?" He looked at John for a moment, closing the distance between him and Scorpius. "Then again, no. You're not him."  
  
"I carry on his legacy," John replied.  
  
The Joker laughed, more of a cackle than anything a normal person would do. "That's so noble, bat-brain, I'm going to start crying in a microt. Not that I should- your mentor never cut me any slack, but these reunions are always so touching."  
  
"Leave here," Scorpius growled. "I will show you mercy if you comply." A curl of smoke was beginning to waft out of the side of his head.  
  
"I'd rather you show me the sights, Scorpy. Since the total destruction of your Gammak base here is happening right now, I would need the total package tour." He looked back at John. "I got to hand it to you, for a beginner, you got quite the panache for fighting Peacekeepers. Prisoners and PKs lying dead, everything is falling apart around our ears and the gimp himself is overheating. I love it!"  
  
John stepped away from Scorpius. "I'll deal with you once I've taken care of him."  
  
"No need."  
  
The Joker held up the grenade John had dropped. "I think I can do us all a favor here and help rid Scorpy of his favorite drug. I'm sure Ra's al Ghul would've liked that."  
  
A sudden explosion above rocked the foundation and caused all those present to stagger as the reactor began to reach critical.  
  
"This is mine!" Scorpius roared, his Scarran voice taking over. "I have succeeded him as the sovereign of immortality!"  
  
The Joker laughed again. "Lemme tell ya, Scorpy. I knew Ra's al Ghul, I worked with Ra's Al Ghul, and you, leather-boy, are no Ra's al Ghul."  
  
Everything went into slow motion as the Joker hit the trigger and tossed the grenade backhand where it landed in the pit and exploded, blowing a gaping hole in the side of the pool where the chemicals began rushing out in a torrent.  
  
There was a tremendous explosion above and the base buckled hard as more debris began to fall. The base was collapsing. The reactor was ready to detonate any moment.  
  
"NO!"  
  
Scorpius's eyes bulged. And he charged into the pool, desperate to salvage any remaining sustenance he could get from it.  
  
"Okay, Bats, nice talking to you, but that's my cue!"  
  
Laughing hysterically, the Joker jumped into the pool and grabbed Scorpius by the neck. Scorpius now screamed in rage and began struggling with his former prisoner. Chemicals sprayed wildly, obscuring them as they disappeared into the pool, only the flaying of their limbs disturbing the rising smoke as the two enemies battled to the death.  
  
"Batman, come quickly!"  
  
Stark grabbed John by his cape and quickly led him to the side of the chamber. There was an emergency lift.  
  
"You must hurry, you have only microts. Here, take this." Stark handed him a coding device. "This will give you access to the Prowler. No one else has it. Scorpius's nurse was holding it for him." Stark indicated humorously at his pants. "He has no pockets!"  
  
John grabbed his shoulder. "You come with me. I can get you out of here."  
  
Stark should his head. "Do not worry about me, I'll be fine. Go, now. Stop the Peacekeepers, and remember what I said." Stark pushed him into the lift and the doors sealed shut.  
  
John held on to the rails as the lift shot upwards at tremendous speed. He could feel a thick wave of heat pass through the chambers as he rose above the reactors. It would be any moment now, he only hoped the Prowler was intact. Stark had told him on the way to the chambers no one was to leave in the ship until Scorpius was present.  
  
As the lift slowed, stopped and opened its doors, he saw the Prowler waiting for him. The hangar was smoke-filled, empty and the last of the ships were departing. No one was left to challenge him. The explosions were coming more frequently now and the trembling under his feet was continuous- the reactor was building up to critical.  
  
The coding device attached to the lock easily indicated by its shape. With a press of a button, it fell off and he was in the cockpit before he realized it. Bruce's training had covered Prowler operations, and the ancient had given John just enough information on how to use the wormhole device. With blinding speed, he ignited the Prowler's engines and the ship moved forward.  
  
He made it out with seconds to spare. As the Prowler cleared the hangar opening, the base collapsed. From the air, he saw the upper part of the tower fall straight down abruptly to the reactor in the center. A massive explosion shot out around the base like a spiral and the entire structure fell at an angle, the large spire trailing black smoke as it crashed down to the Martian surface.  
  
John reached for the comm. "Aeryn, can you hear me?"  
  
"I'm here, John. The Zelbinion is following us, but Nightwing's shields are weakening. I don't know how much longer we can hold them off."  
  
"You've done enough. The ship is in range now. I'm going to go EVA in a few microts. I need you and your ship to stay out of the path of the wormhole."  
  
"What wormhole?"  
  
"Just watch and go ooh!"  
  
The leviathan gunship shot past and the mass of the Zelbinion was bearing down on him. Aeryn and the leviathan hybrid fought a magnificent battle, but the smaller ship was outgunned. It was draining all it's stored up energy and shields were weakened.  
  
John's only reaction was to smile. "Right about. now."  
  
There was a bright burst of light and a swirl of blue and green as the bloom of a massive wormhole opened up in front of him, right in the path of the Zelbinion. John stared on in amazement. The great secret of them was that they were everywhere, one only needed to know the equations to locate them. Scorpius had set the base on Mars for a reason: he knew there was one here. He managed to torture the information from the Ancient, but little else. Now, John commanded all the knowledge.  
  
Sending the Prowler into a loop, he activated the device. A bright band of yellow began to form along the mouth of the wormhole. The color blended into the funnel and it began to shimmer. John shifted the controls and flew free of the maelstrom.  
  
"Aeryn lock on my signal. I'm ditching this boat!"  
  
The oxygen bubble slid downward from his cowl and gave him an airtight seal. The Bat suit was designed for surviving underwater or even the vacuum of space. That was the perfect thing because right now he needed it.  
  
The Prowler's ejection rockets sent him free and tumbling away from the Zelbinion and gave him the perfect view of what was about to happen. The wormhole's increasing gravity pulled the command carrier towards it like a magnet, and their forward momentum made them unable to stop.  
  
"Sir!" The lieutenant shouted. "The wormhole is pulling us in!"  
  
Braca began to panic. "Do something! Take evasive action! Pull hard to our left."  
  
"It's too late, sir!"  
  
The Zelbinion rocked and buckled as it's mass hurled directly into the mouth of the wormhole. Braca looked around at the viewscreen's broadcasting images all around them. On one monitor he could see the smoking remains of the Martian Gammak base. Beside the base was the giant face staring up at them.  
  
Braca blinked. Perhaps it was the distortion caused by the edge of the wormhole distorting the image as they entered it, but he could swear.  
  
It looked like the face was smiling at them.  
  
***  
  
"You did real good, Batman."  
  
John checked his comm. He did not recognize the male voice speaking to him. "Who is this?"  
  
"Just a friend repaying a debt for his brother. You got a lot of work ahead of you. Make it count."  
  
The voice sounded like the one that had given them permission from the Zelbinion to fly down to the Gammak base. "I'll do my best," he finally said.  
  
Tauvo Crais watched from a distance as the leviathan hybrid picked up the Batman. He set the controls of his Prowler for Earth. It had been a long time since he saw his brother. It would be good to catch up on things.  
  
"Much fortune," he said quietly.  
  
***  
  
Epilogue: And so it has Begun  
  
"Where do you think they went?"  
  
John did not hear the question. He was watching Moya's control collar finally fall away. After being picked up by Aeryn and Nightwing, those on Moya had assisted with picking up survivors from the Gammak base, Peacekeepers included (though they were under house arrest). The wormhole that had sent Zelbinion to another part of the galaxy had closed up again, as if it were never there.  
  
He turned to Aeryn. "What did you say?"  
  
She smiled. "I said, where do you think the Zelbinion ended up at?"  
  
"According to the bell ringing in my head, they are currently drifting through the edge of the Uncharted Territories, where they have no jurisdiction."  
  
"What happens when they reach Peacekeeper High Command?"  
  
"I'm sure they will tell their leaders to beware of the Batman," D'Argo said, walking up to them with Zhaan and Rygel. "You did good. For a human."  
  
"I'll take that as a compliment. I heard you had quite an ordeal up here yourself while I was on Mars."  
  
D'Argo held up a hand. "Don't go there."  
  
John laughed. It really felt good for the first time in a long time. "Now that Moya is free. Where will you all go?"  
  
Zhaan approached from behind. "If the coordinates you gave Pilot are accurate, we will enter a wormhole between the planets Neptune and Pluto, exit into known systems and after several starbursts we will all be returned to our home worlds."  
  
"Is there any way we can repay what you did for us?" D'Argo asked.  
  
"Tell your leaders what happened here. Tell them the Peacekeepers can be beaten. And if you happen to come across Zelbinion trying to come back, tell them I'll be waiting."  
  
"Rather dramatic for a species like yours," Rygel said. "But I'll be sure to pass that on."  
  
"What about you, Officer Sun?" Zhaan asked. "Life will be very dangerous for you on Earth."  
  
"I'm used to that," Aeryn said. "Besides, Earth is part of my heritage. And he needs someone to show him how to do things right," she indicated to John.  
  
He shook his head, not amused. "Whatever. It's time to go now. Good luck to all of you."  
  
"Moya and I are forever grateful to you, Batman. And to you, Officer Sun," said Pilot, appearing on the nearby clamshell. "Do not worry about us, Nightwing says he will accompany us back to the Uncharted Territories."  
  
"That's good. I figured he could use a mother," Aeryn said. "Mother's are important to a child."  
  
***  
  
After taking them behind Earth's moon, Moya departed in a spectacular starburst, her first in many cycles. The Batscape was more than able to make the journey back in stealth mode.  
  
"What happens now?" Aeryn said. "Word will spread fast now that Scorpius is gone and the Zelbinion is no longer around. There could be anarchy."  
  
"We'll be there. I would say tomorrow is going to be very interesting," John replied.  
  
The Batscape's comm system began beeping, indicating a signal coming in.  
  
"Who could be calling? No one knows we're coming back, not with stealth mode on."  
  
John turned the screen on and Bruce's face appeared. "Hello John. If you are receiving this, it means you and Aeryn were successful in your mission. In fact, I knew you would succeed, because you are the best at what you do. You will be happy to know that I always have a Plan B for any situation, so if you follow the coordinates I'm broadcasting, you will find your secondary base of operations. ALFRED is waiting with a hot meal for both of you. There is a hangar for the Batscape and my program has been uploaded into the new computer so I will still be around to provide you with information, assistance and the occasional morale boost, so don't think you've gotten rid of me so easily."  
  
John and Aeryn looked at each other, total surprise etched on their faces.  
  
"Oh, and welcome home. Batman."  
  
A gentle hand touched Johns. He looked over at Aeryn who smiled thoughtfully and everything suddenly fell into place. Home beckoned to both of them.  
  
*** October 31, 2038  
  
The night was surprisingly quiet here.  
  
There were no sounds of traffic or klaxons or people shouting in the streets. Nor was there the deathly silence of the Batcave while he slept. Here, there was a gentle breeze blowing through the trees outside the windows and the chirping of crickets in the meadow nearby.  
  
On the outside, Bruce's old summer mansion in the far mountains north of Gotham still looked like it was abandoned, as it had been thirty years before. Inside, ALFRED and the utility robots had been busy converting the insides into the new base of operations. It was quite homey inside, but with all the necessities the Batcave had provided. Bruce always managed to find homes with large basements and underground hangars. How he managed it he would never say.  
  
John watched the shadows of the trees as they played against the windows near the bed. His body still felt stiff from the ordeal on Mars, but he felt more relaxed than he had in years. There was a completeness to everything he did that had not been there before.  
  
He turned his head to listen to Aeryn sleeping quietly next to him, the scent of evergreens in her hair filling his senses before he fell into slumber. She was soft and warm to the touch as her chest rose and fell with the rhythm of her breathing. For once, he felt like he was home.  
  
Tonight was Halloween in Gotham, though few really observed it anymore, for fear of Peacekeeper intervention. He decided tonight would be different. It would be his surprise to the Peacekeepers and humans alike. He had meant it when he said he expected the next day things would be interesting.  
  
He rolled over and drifted into sleep with his arm around Aeryn. It was a calm and peaceful transition for him- the nightmares were gone.  
  
***  
  
In the last days of Peacekeeper occupation, there were rumors of massing by resistance forces on all the continents, even talk of races from the Uncharteds coming to lend assistance. All supply lines had ceased and the ore mining and other harvesting had halted.  
  
***  
  
Bialar Crais watched the light in the sky from his office. He was not overly concerned. If anything he was pondering what to have for dinner with his brother, who was currently visiting. He merely left orders to all security forces to prevent looting and make certain no one is hurt if rioting breaks out.  
  
He shrugged his shoulders as he closed the curtains. Maybe he would take his brother to look at the ocean tomorrow. Earth was such a beautiful place, after all.  
  
***  
  
Selina looked up at the sky from where she sat on the old building, enjoying a glass of wine. She had been waiting for years to enjoy this moment. She could almost cry, as it reminded her of the old times- back in her wilder days. But the sight usually meant it was time for her to run. This time around, she looked forward to seeing the Peacekeepers do the same.  
  
"Good work, Johnny."  
  
***  
  
Vicki Vale had tucked in her daughter for the night when she looked out the window and saw the sky. She wanted to wake Caitlin to share it with her, but decided to let her sleep. After all, the nights were much safer now for the humans. Caitlin's hero, the Batman, lay beside her as a stuffed doll Vicki stayed up to make.  
  
"Sleep tight, sweetheart. He's back for good."  
  
***  
  
Humans all across Gotham flooded into the streets to look at the object in the night sky. Prowler and Marauder patrols circled above trying to locate the source that the light came from, but there was none found. It appeared to be a hologram of unknown origin. But Gotham citizens, both old and young, recognized the Bat signal, as it held steadfast against the passing clouds.  
  
The humans across the city all cheered and celebrated. Witnesses were said to have seen the expressions of the Peacekeepers as they looked up and saw fear there for the first time.  
  
Finis 


End file.
